What does dictate mean?

Dictate most often means to say words aloud so that someone else can write them down, or so that a machine can record them. The Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary defines the verb this way: "to say words for somebody else to write down or to be recorded" ¹. Cambridge gives the same act with a machine added: speaking something aloud "for a person or machine to record what is said, so that it can be written down" ².

Dictate means speaking words so they can be written down

The traditional use is in an office. A manager speaks a letter, and an assistant or typist writes it. The modern use is software: you speak, and your phone or computer writes what you say. Both fit the same definition, which is why you will see the word on dictation apps and on the "Dictate" button in Microsoft Word.

The word has a long history in English. Merriam-Webster traces dictation, the noun for the act, to Latin dictare, meaning to say aloud words to be transcribed by another, and gives 1624 as its first known use in English ³. The verb shares that Latin root.

Dictate also means to give orders with total authority

The second common sense has nothing to do with writing. Cambridge defines the verb as giving orders, or telling someone exactly what they must do, with total authority ⁴. This is the sense in "dictate terms", where the stronger party sets the conditions of a deal.

• The buyer will dictate the terms of the delivery.
• The weather dictated our schedule for the week.

Both sentences use the same verb as the one for speaking into a recorder, but the meaning is "decide" rather than "say aloud". If you are unsure which sense a writer means, look at the object. Words, letters or notes point to writing, while terms, rules or a schedule point to control.

The noun dictate is a formal order

Dictate also works as a noun. Cambridge marks it as formal and usually plural, and defines it as an order that should be obeyed, often one you give yourself ⁵. You will meet it in writing about morals or duty, as in "the dictates of conscience". In everyday speech people use the plural "orders", "rules" or "demands" instead.

Do not confuse the noun dictate with the noun dictation. Dictation names the act of speaking words for writing, and Cambridge defines it as the activity of dictating something for someone else to write down ⁶. That is why the phrase "take dictation" means to write down what someone says. For the grammar, see is dictate a noun or a verb.

Synonyms depend on which sense you mean

Synonyms follow the sense, so pick the list that matches your sentence.

• For speaking words to be written down: say aloud, read out, or record.
• For giving orders: command, direct, or prescribe.

These are rough equivalents rather than exact swaps. "Read out" suggests a list of prepared words, while "dictate" suggests composing as you speak. For a longer guide to the writing sense, see how to dictate.

Where you will see the word on a screen

Microsoft labels its speech button Dictate in the Word desktop app, but only Microsoft 365 subscribers get it ⁷. Apple uses the noun Dictation as the name of its feature, for the same act.

If you wanted the everyday meaning of a related word, read what is dictation, and for how the word differs from a similar-looking one, see dictation vs diction. The term itself is defined in the glossary entry for dictation.