-ate

1. <suffix> As an ending of participles or participial adjectives it is equivalent to -ed; as, situate or situated; animate or animated.

2. As the ending of a verb, it means to make, to cause, to act, etc.; as, to propitiate (to make propitious); to animate (to give life to).

3. As a noun suffix, it marks the agent; as, curate, delegate. It also sometimes marks the office or dignity; as, tribunate.

4. <chemistry> It is used to denote the salts formed from those acids whose names end -ic (excepting binary or halogen acids); as, sulphate from sulphuric acid, nitrate from nitric acid, etc. It is also used in the case of certain basic salts.

Origin: From the L. Suffix -atus, the past participle ending of verbs of the 1st conj.

(29 Oct 1998)


Terms mentioned in text: suffix, ending, participles, equivalent, ed, animate, ending, means, make, cause, animate, life, suffix, marks, agent, office, chemistry, salts, formed, names, end, -ic, binary, halogen, sulphate, sulphuric, nitrate, nitric, case, basic, salts
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