relegate

verb

rel·​e·​gate ˈre-lə-ˌgāt How to pronounce relegate (audio)
relegated; relegating

transitive verb

1
: to send into exile : banish
2
: assign: such as
a
: to assign to a place of insignificance or of oblivion : put out of sight or mind
b
: to assign to an appropriate place or situation on the basis of classification or appraisal
c
: to submit to someone or something for appropriate action : delegate
d
: to transfer (a sports team) to a lower ranking division
relegation noun

Did you know?

Originally relegate meant "to send into exile, banish". So when you relegate an old sofa to the basement, you're sending it to home-decorating Siberia. When confronted with a matter that no one really wants to face, a chief executive may relegate it to a committee "for further study", which may manage to ignore it for years. It may be annoying to read a newspaper article about a pet project and find that your own contributions have been relegated to a short sentence near the end.

Choose the Right Synonym for relegate

commit, entrust, confide, consign, relegate mean to assign to a person or place for a definite purpose.

commit may express the general idea of delivering into another's charge or the special sense of transferring to a superior power or to a special place of custody.

committed the felon to prison

entrust implies committing with trust and confidence.

the president is entrusted with broad powers

confide implies entrusting with great assurance or reliance.

confided complete control of my affairs to my attorney

consign suggests removing from one's control with formality or finality.

consigned the damaging notes to the fire

relegate implies a consigning to a particular class or sphere often with a suggestion of getting rid of.

relegated to an obscure position in the company

Examples of relegate in a Sentence

The bill has been relegated to committee for discussion. courtiers and generals who incurred the emperor's disfavor were soon relegated to the farther reaches of the empire
Recent Examples on the Web Image Sculpture here tends toward monumentality and is often relegated to the outskirts of the exhibition. Martha Schwendener, New York Times, 13 Mar. 2024 Black workers made up 39% of the available area workforce but just 15% of workers at the plant, and even then they were relegated to the lowest-paying, most menial jobs. Jessica Guynn, USA TODAY, 6 Mar. 2024 For a disease that just decades ago was relegated to a dusty corner of science — and reduced to an issue women made up — the paper is a milestone, albeit one based on a small sample of patients. Isabella Cueto, STAT, 21 Feb. 2024 Madame Web doesn’t capitalize on the affecting potential of this realization; most of these discoveries are relegated to corny exposition, and the girls never move beyond stock-character territory. Lovia Gyarkye, The Hollywood Reporter, 13 Feb. 2024 Jimmy Olsen, Superman franchise (1938–present) Sidekick to: Clark Kent/Superman On the big screen, Daily Planet photographer and cub reporter Jimmy Olsen is relegated to playing Clark's (and Superman's) gee-whiz cheerleader. Ew Staff Updated, EW.com, 6 Mar. 2024 People get relegated to make-up and hair and assistants — which are not decision-making roles. Thinus Ferreira, Variety, 3 Mar. 2024 Some ingredients are, unfairly or not, relegated to certain times of year. Anna Luisa Rodriguez, Washington Post, 28 Feb. 2024 And yet, in business settings, it had been mainly relegated to the water cooler or lunchroom—not the boardroom. Brent Dykes, Forbes, 27 Feb. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'relegate.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Latin relegatus, past participle of relegare, from re- + legare to send with a commission — more at legate

First Known Use

1599, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of relegate was in 1599

Dictionary Entries Near relegate

Cite this Entry

“Relegate.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/relegate. Accessed 28 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

relegate

verb
rel·​e·​gate ˈrel-ə-ˌgāt How to pronounce relegate (audio)
relegated; relegating
1
: to remove or dismiss to a less important place
relegate some old books to the attic
2
: to refer or hand over for decision or carrying out
relegate that matter to a special committee
relegation noun

More from Merriam-Webster on relegate

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