devote

See also: dévote

English

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin dēvōtus, past participle of Latin dēvoveō (“dedicate by a vow, sacrifice oneself, promise solemnly”). Doublet of devow; see also devout. Displaced native Middle English ēstful, from Old English ēstful.

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /dɪˈvəʊt/
• (General American, Canada) IPA^(key): /dɪˈvoʊt/

  • Audio (Southern California):

    (file)

• (Australia) IPA^(key): /dɪˈvəʉt/, /dɪˈvɐʉt/
• (South Asia) IPA^(key): /ɖᵻˈvoʈ/
• Rhymes: -əʊt

Verb

devote (third-person singular simple present devotes, present participle devoting, simple past and past participle devoted)

1. to give one's time, focus one's efforts, commit oneself, etc. entirely for, on, or to a certain matter; to consecrate.

   They devoted their lives to following Jesus Christ.

   I devoted this afternoon to repainting my study, and nothing will get in my way.

   • 1678, Obadiah Grew, Meditations Upon Our Saviour's Parable of The Prodigal Son:

     He is the Chief of this far Countrey; and to his service, carnal and wicked men devote themselves.

   • 1879, Asa Gray, Botanical Text-book:

     a leafless and simple branch […] devoted to the purpose of climbing

2. to consign over; to doom

   to devote one to destruction

   The city was devoted to the flames.

3. to execrate; to curse

Usage notes

• Often used in the past participle form, which has become an adjective. See devoted.

Derived terms

• devotement
• devoter
• devotion
• misdevote
• predevote
• redevote

Related terms

• devotee

Translations

to commit for a certain matter — see also vow,‎ dedicate,‎ consecrate

• Arabic: توفر على, صرف همته إلى
• Armenian: նվիրել (hy) (nvirel), նվիրվել (hy) (nvirvel)
• Bulgarian: посвещавам (bg) (posveštavam), отдавам (bg) (otdavam)
• Catalan: consagrar (ca)
• Czech: zasvětit
• Danish: vie (da), hellige, tilegne (da)
• Dutch: wijden (nl), toewijden (nl)
• Finnish: omistaa (fi), pyhittää (fi), omistautua (fi)
• French: consacrer (fr), vouer (fr)
• Galician: consagrar (gl)
• German: widmen (de), verpflichten (de)
• Greek: αφιερώνω (el) (afieróno)

  Ancient Greek: καθιερόω (kathieróō)

• Hebrew: הקדיש (hikdísh)
• Hungarian: szán (hu), áldoz (hu), szentel (hu)
• Irish: tabhair
• Japanese: 凝る (ja) (こる, koru)
• Latgalian: paškiert
• Latin: addīcō, dēvoveō
• Latvian: veltīt
• Māori: whakaū, whakaihi, kiriwhakauka
• Polish: poświęcać (pl) impf, poświęcić (pl) pf, angażować (pl) impf, zaangażować (pl) pf
• Portuguese: devotar
• Russian: посвяща́ть (ru) impf (posvjaščátʹ), посвяти́ть (ru) pf (posvjatítʹ)
• Scottish Gaelic: coisrig
• Spanish: devotar (United States), abocarse (es), desvivirse (es)
• Swedish: hänge (sv), ägna (sv)
• Thai: อุทิศ (th) (ù-tít)
• Turkish: adamak (tr)
• Ukrainian: присвя́чувати (prysvjáčuvaty), приділя́ти (prydiljáty)

Adjective

devote (comparative more devote, superlative most devote)

1. (obsolete) devoted; addicted; devout
   • 1667, John Milton, “(please specify the page number)”, in Paradise Lost. […], London: […] [Samuel Simmons], and are to be sold by Peter Parker […]; [a]nd by Robert Boulter […]; [a]nd Matthias Walker, […], →OCLC; republished as Paradise Lost in Ten Books: […], London: Basil Montagu Pickering […], 1873, →OCLC:

     A world devote to universal wrack

Anagrams

• vetoed

Dutch

Pronunciation

• Audio:

  (file)

Adjective

devote

1. inflection of devoot:
   1. masculine/feminine singular attributive
   2. definite neuter singular attributive
   3. plural attributive

German

Pronunciation

• Audio (Germany (Berlin)):

  (file)

Adjective

devote

1. inflection of devot:
   1. strong/mixed nominative/accusative feminine singular
   2. strong nominative/accusative plural
   3. weak nominative all-gender singular
   4. weak accusative feminine/neuter singular

Italian

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /deˈvɔ.te/
• Rhymes: -ɔte
• Hyphenation: de‧vò‧te

Adjective

devote

1. feminine plural of devota

Noun

devote f

1. plural of devota

Anagrams

• dovete

Latin

Pronunciation

• (Classical Latin) IPA^(key): [deːˈwoː.tɛ]
• (modern Italianate Ecclesiastical) IPA^(key): [deˈvɔː.te]

Etymology 1

Etymology tree

Proto-Indo-European *de

Proto-Indo-European *-h₁

Proto-Indo-European *déh₁

Proto-Italic *dē

Latin dē

Latin dē-

Proto-Indo-European *h₁wegʷʰ-

Proto-Indo-European *-yeti

Proto-Indo-European *-éyeti

Proto-Indo-European *h₁wogʷʰéyeti

Proto-Italic *woɣʷeō

Latin voveō

Latin dēvoveō

Proto-Indo-European *-tós

Proto-Italic *-tos

Latin -tus

Latin dēvōt(us)

Latin -ē

Latin dēvōtē

From dēvōt(us) (“vowed”) + -ē (“-ly”, adverb-forming suffix).

Adverb

dēvōtē (comparative dēvōtius, superlative dēvōtissimē)

1. devotedly, faithfully

Etymology 2

See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.

Participle

dēvōte

1. vocative masculine singular of dēvōtus

References

• “devote”, in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
• “devote”, in Gaffiot, Félix (1934), Dictionnaire illustré latin-français, Hachette.

Portuguese

Verb

devote

1. inflection of devotar:
   1. first/third-person singular present subjunctive
   2. third-person singular imperative

Swedish

Adjective

devote

1. definite natural masculine singular of devot