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implicate

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implicate¹

  • /ˈɪmplɪkeɪt/

Rhymes with -eɪt

Where it comes from

First attested in the 15th century, in Middle English; inherited from Middle English implicaten (poorly attested), from implicat(e) (“wrapped, entwined; involved, connected (with)”, possibly also used as the past participle of implicaten) + -en (verb-forming suffix), borrowed from Latin implicātus, perfect passive participle of implicō (“to entangle, involve”) (see -ate (verb-forming suffix)), from plicō (“to fold”). Doublet of imply and employ.

verb implicates · implicating · implicated

  1. transitive, usually, with in To show to be connected or involved in an unfavorable or criminal way. The evidence implicates involvement of top management in the scheme.
  2. nonstandard, transitive To imply, to have as a necessary consequence or accompaniment. What did Nixon's visit to China implicate for Russia?
  3. To imply without entailing; to have as an implicature.
  4. archaic To fold or twist together, intertwine, interlace, entangle, entwine.

    Similar: ensnarl, involve, ravel, enmesh, ensnare, entangle, foul, implicate, imply, mat, snarl, tangle

implicate²

  • /ˈɪmplɪkət/

Rhymes with -ət

Where it comes from

First attested in the first part of the 15ᵗʰ century, in Middle English; inherited from Middle English implicat(e) (“wrapped, entwined; incolved, connected (with)”), see -ate (adjective-forming suffix), -ate (noun-forming suffix) and Etymology 1 for more.

noun implicates

  1. The thing implied.

adjective more implicate · most implicate

  1. also, figuratively, rare Intertwined, enfolded, twisted together; wrapped up (with), entangled, involved (in).
  2. also, especially, figuratively, rare, in quantum theory used in implicate order
  3. obsolete Involved, intricate.

Translations

Every language

verb to have as a necessary circumstance

Françaisimpliquer
Italianoimplicare

verb to have as an implicature

Deutschimplikatieren

verb to connect or involve

Españolimplicar
中文負累 /负累 fùlèi, 牽涉 /牵涉 qiānshè
Portuguêsimplicar
Françaisimpliquer
Italianoimplicare
Русскийвовлекать vovlekatʹ, впутывать vputyvatʹ

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Cite this
MLA

"implicate." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/implicate. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026.

APA

implicate. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/implicate

Chicago

"implicate." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/implicate.

BibTeX
@misc{implicate_2026,
  title = {implicate},
  howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://micwyn.com/word/implicate},
  urldate = {2026-11-06}
}