activate
to make active; cause to function or act.
Physics.
to render more reactive; excite: to activate a molecule.
to induce radioactivity.
to aerate (sewage) in order to accelerate decomposition of impure organic matter by microorganisms.
Chemistry.
to make (carbon, a catalyst, molecules, etc.) more active.
to hasten (reactions) by various means, as heating.
to place (a military unit or station) on an active status in an assigned capacity.
to become active or functional.
Origin of activate
1Other words for activate
1 | actuate, start, turn on, set going |
Opposites for activate
Other words from activate
- ac·ti·va·tion [ak-tuh-vey-shuhn], /ˌæk təˈveɪ ʃən/, noun
- non·ac·ti·va·tion, noun
- o·ver·ac·ti·vate, verb (used with object), o·ver·ac·ti·vat·ed, o·ver·ac·ti·vat·ing.
- su·per·ac·ti·vate, verb (used with object), su·per·ac·ti·vat·ed, su·per·ac·ti·vat·ing.
- un·ac·ti·vat·ed, adjective
Words that may be confused with activate
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
British Dictionary definitions for activate
/ (ˈæktɪˌveɪt) /
to make active or capable of action
physics to make radioactive
chem
to increase the rate of (a reaction)
to treat (a substance, such as carbon or alumina) so as to increase powers of adsorption
physiol to prepare by arousal (the body or one of its organs (e.g. the brain)) for action
to purify (sewage) by aeration
US military to create, mobilize, or organize (a unit)
Derived forms of activate
- activation, noun
- activator, noun
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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