dictate

dictate

—vb
1.	to say (messages, letters, speeches, etc) aloud for mechanical recording or verbatim transcription by another person
2.	(tr) to prescribe (commands) authoritatively
3.	(intr) to act in a tyrannical manner; seek to impose one's will on others

—n
4.	an authoritative command
5.	a guiding principle or rule: the dictates of reason

[C17: from Latin dictāre to say repeatedly, order, from dīcere to say]

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
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Etymonline

Word Origin & History

dictate

1590s, "to practice dictation," from L. dictatus, pp. of dictare "say often, prescribe," frequentative of dicere "tell, say" (see diction). Sense of "command" is 1620s. The noun is from 1590s. Related: Dictated; dictates; dictating.

Example sentences

Then you hold down a button and dictate the command.

Then she transcribes what you've dictated in orderly fashion, with a workload

she can plan.

The metal or metals within the pyrotechnic mixture and the burning temperature

dictate the color and intensity of the light.

Capacity, of course, is a key influencer of the industry's ability to dictate

fares.

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Matching Quote

"It is as often a weakness in the aged to dictate to the young, as it is folly in the young to slight the warnings of the aged."

-H.