activate
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ac·ti·vate
(ăk′tə-vāt′)tr.v. ac·ti·vat·ed, ac·ti·vat·ing, ac·ti·vates
1. To set in motion; make active or more active.
2. To organize or create (a military unit, for example): activate the National Guard.
3. To treat (sewage) with aeration and bacteria to aid decomposition.
4. Chemistry To accelerate a reaction in, as by heat.
5. Physics To make (a substance) radioactive.
6. Biology To convert (a molecule or cell) into a form that carries out a specific action: activate an enzyme; activate B cells.
ac′ti·va′tion n.
ac′ti·va′tor n.
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
activate
(ˈæktɪˌveɪt)vb (tr)
1. to make active or capable of action
2. (General Physics) physics to make radioactive
3. (Chemistry) chem
a. to increase the rate of (a reaction)
b. to treat (a substance, such as carbon or alumina) so as to increase powers of adsorption
4. (Physiology) physiol to prepare by arousal (the body or one of its organs (e.g. the brain)) for action
5. (Microbiology) to purify (sewage) by aeration
6. (Military) military US to create, mobilize, or organize (a unit)
ˌactiˈvation n
ˈactiˌvator n
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014
ac•ti•vate
(ˈæk təˌveɪt)v.t. -vat•ed, -vat•ing.
1. to make active.
2. Physics.
a. to render more reactive; excite: to activate a molecule.
b. to induce radioactivity.
3. Chem.
a. to make (carbon, a catalyst, etc.) more active.
b. to hasten (reactions), as by heating.
4. to place (a military unit) on an active status.
[1620–30]
ac`ti•va′tion, n.
Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.
activate
1. To put into existence by official order a unit, post, camp, station, base or shore activity which has previously been constituted and designated by name or number, or both, so that it can be organized to function in its assigned capacity. (DOD)
2. To prepare for active service a naval ship or craft which has been in an inactive or reserve status. See also commission; constitute. 04/12/01: Deleted from JP 1-02 per revision.
2. To prepare for active service a naval ship or craft which has been in an inactive or reserve status. See also commission; constitute. 04/12/01: Deleted from JP 1-02 per revision.
Dictionary of Military and Associated Terms. US Department of Defense 2005.
activate
Past participle: activated
Gerund: activating
| Imperative |
|---|
| activate |
| activate |
Collins English Verb Tables © HarperCollins Publishers 2011
ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:
Switch to new thesaurus
| Verb | 1. |  activate - put in motion or move to act; "trigger a reaction"; "actuate the circuits" |
| 2. | activate - make active or more active; "activate an old file" alter, change, modify - cause to change; make different; cause a transformation; "The advent of the automobile may have altered the growth pattern of the city"; "The discussion has changed my thinking about the issue" reactivate - activate (an old file) anew deactivate, inactivate - make inactive; "they deactivated the file" | |
| 3. | activate - make more adsorptive; "activate a metal" | |
| 4. |  activate - aerate (sewage) so as to favor the growth of organisms that decompose organic matter | |
| 5. |  activate - make (substances) radioactive |
Based on WordNet 3.0, Farlex clipart collection. © 2003-2012 Princeton University, Farlex Inc.
activate
verb start, move, trigger (off), stimulate, turn on, set off, initiate, switch on, propel, rouse, prod, get going, mobilize, kick-start (informal), set in motion, impel, galvanize, set going, actuate video cameras that can be activated by computer
stop, check, arrest, halt, stall, turn off, terminate, impede, deactivate
stop, check, arrest, halt, stall, turn off, terminate, impede, deactivate
Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002
activate
verbThe American Heritage® Roget's Thesaurus. Copyright © 2013, 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Translations
يُشَغِّل، يُنَشِّـط
aktivovatspustit
aktivere
aktivoidakäynnistää
virkja, setja í gang
aktyvintiskatinti veikti
aktivovať
çalıştırmakharekete geçirmek
Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005
Collins English/French Electronic Resource. © HarperCollins Publishers 2005
activate
vt mechanism (person) → betätigen; (heat) → auslösen; (switch, lever) → in Gang setzen; alarm → auslösen; bomb → zünden; (Chem, Phys) → aktivieren; (Comput) file → aufrufen; (US Mil) → mobilisieren
Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007
Collins Italian Dictionary 1st Edition © HarperCollins Publishers 1995
activate
(ˈӕktiveit) verb to put into force or operation. The smoke activated the fire alarms.
Kernerman English Multilingual Dictionary © 2006-2013 K Dictionaries Ltd.
ac·ti·vate
vt. activar, hacer activo.
English-Spanish Medical Dictionary © Farlex 2012
activate
vt activarEnglish-Spanish/Spanish-English Medical Dictionary Copyright © 2006 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.