What does "delete" mean?
A deletion.
Delete
/dɪˈliːt/ noun, verb, slang
noun, verb, slang ·Very common ·Middle school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: A deletion.
- Grammar: delete is listed as noun, verb, slang.
- Nearest alternatives: blue-pencil, cancel, erase, abbreviate.
- Useful contrasts: colonial council records, documented messaging, educational feature.
- Usage evidence: Delete his name from the list of the applicants.
How to use "delete"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "delete" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "delete" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "delete" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "delete" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "delete" is acting as noun, verb, slang in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "blue-pencil" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "delete", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 A deletion.
"Cascading updates and cascading deletes are useful features of the SQL Server database engine."
- 2 A key that may be pressed to delete something (such as text or files) from a computer. The key also erases text from left to right, unlike the backspace key.
- 3 A remainder of a music or video release.
"One CRIA official pegs the total record sales of deletes and imports as high as 30 percent for 1976"
- 4 Alternative letter-case form of Delete. alt-of, uncountable
- 5 The delete character (U+007F or %7F).
Verb
- 1 To remove, get rid of or erase, especially written or printed material, or data on a computer or other device. transitive
"Early on in the model year [1968] Pontiac experienced some production problems [in producing polyurethane bumpers] regarding fit, matching paint color, and bonding the material to the base metal. As a result, 2,108 1968 GTOs left the factory with chrome bumpers borrowed from the LeMans. These cars had a special option on their order sheets called "Endura bumper delete." Everyone wanted the Endura bumpers and no one ordered that option of his or her own free will. As soon as Pontiac worked out the production problems the chrome bumpers disappeared for good and "Endura bumper delete" disappeared from the option list."
- 2 cut or eliminate wordnet
- 3 To defeat or dominate. Internet, slang
"Also I got deleted by a rogue and druid who were both invisible and just popped up and cleaned me."
- 4 wipe out digitally or magnetically recorded information wordnet
- 5 To kill or murder. slang, transitive
""Go find this guy, Alex," Conch had said. "And delete him.""
Show 1 more definition
- 6 remove or make invisible wordnet
Antonyms
colonial council recordsdocumented messagingeducational featureeducational history text
Example
"Delete his name from the list of the applicants."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "delete"?
Common synonyms include: blue-pencil, cancel, erase, abbreviate, abolish, abridge.
How do you use "delete" in a sentence?
Delete his name from the list of the applicants.
How do you pronounce "delete"?
Pronounced /dɪˈliːt/.
Etymology
Etymology 1
From Latin dēlētus, past participle of dēlēre (“destroy, blot out, efface”), from dēlēvī, originally perf. tense of dēlinere (“to daub, erase by smudging”), from dē- (“from, away”) + linere (“to smear, wipe”). Original sense first appears c. 1495. In common use for ordering the absence of features of products (such as automobiles) in the 1960s. The computing sense, including the noun form, first appears c. 1977 in Software: Practice & Experience. Not related to deleterious. Doublet of delible and deleble.
Etymology 2
From the verb delete.