Fact · Dictation
The Cambridge English Dictionary defines dictate, as a verb, as speaking something aloud for a person or machine to record what is said, so that it can be written down.
Checked against its source on October 17, 2026
In the source's own words
“to speak something aloud for a person or machine to record what is said, so that it can be written down”
Dictate: meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge University Press, 2026, Entry for dictate, verb sense 'speak'.
Open the original- What it measures
- Cambridge gives this as the second verb sense of dictate, labeled as speaking. It is the sense behind dictation software and the older practice of dictating letters into a recorder.
- What it does not show
- A dictionary describes common usage. It does not say which sense a given writer intends, and it does not describe any software.