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oblate

 - 7 dictionary results

ob⋅late

1  [ob-leyt, o-bleyt]
Use oblate in a Sentence
–adjective
flattened at the poles, as a spheroid generated by the revolution of an ellipse about its shorter axis (opposed to prolate ).

Origin:
1695–1705; < NL oblātus lengthened, equiv. to L ob- ob- + (prō)lātus prolate

Related forms:
ob⋅late⋅ly, adverb

ob⋅late

2  [ob-leyt, o-bleyt]
–noun
1. a person offered to the service of and living in a monastery, but not under monastic vows or full monastic rule.
2. a lay member of any of various Roman Catholic societies devoted to special religious work.
Origin:
1860–65; < ML oblātus, suppletive ptp. of offerre to offer
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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ob·late 1   (ŏb'lāt', ŏ-blāt')   
adj.  

  1. Having the shape of a spheroid generated by rotating an ellipse about its shorter axis.

  2. Having an equatorial diameter greater than the distance between poles; compressed along or flattened at the poles: Planet Earth is an oblate solid.


[Probably New Latin oblātus : Latin ob-, toward; see ob- + Latin (prō)lātus; see prolate.]
ob'late'ly adv., ob'late'ness n.
ob·late 2   (ŏb'lāt')   
n.  

  1. A layperson dedicated to religious life.

  2. Oblate Roman Catholic Church A member of one of various religious communities for men or women.


[Medieval Latin oblātus, from Latin, past participle of offerre, to offer; see offer.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

oblate  (adj.)
"flattened on the ends," 1705, from L. ob "toward" + latus, abstracted from its opposite, prolatus "lengthened" (see oblate (n.)).

oblate  (n.)
"person devoted to religious work," 1756, from M.L. oblatus, noun use of L. oblatus, variant pp. of L. offerre "to offer, to bring before" (latus "carried, borne" used as suppletive pp. of ferre "to bear"), from *tlatos, from PIE base *tel-, *tol- "to bear, carry" (see extol).
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Encyclopedia

oblate

(from Latin oblatus, "one offered up"), in Roman Catholicism, a lay person connected with a religious order or institution and living according to its regulations; a minor dedicated by his parents to become a monk according to the Benedictine Rule; or a member of either the Oblates of Mary Immaculate (O.M.I.) or the Oblates of St. Francis de Sales (O.S.F.S.)

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Encyclopedia Britannica, 2008. Encyclopedia Britannica Online.
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