allocate

verb

al·​lo·​cate ˈa-lə-ˌkāt 

allocated; allocating

transitive verb

1

: to apportion for a specific purpose or to particular persons or things : distribute

allocate tasks among human and automated components

2

: to set apart or earmark : designate

allocate a section of the building for special research purposes

allocatable

ˈa-lə-ˌkā-tə-bəl 

adjective

allocation

ˌa-lə-ˈkā-shən 

noun

allocator

ˈa-lə-ˌkā-tər 

noun

Synonyms

• allot
• assign
• distribute

Examples of allocate in a Sentence

Money from the sale of the house was allocated to each of the children.

We need to determine the best way to allocate our resources.

Have enough funds been allocated to finance the project?

Recent Examples on the Web

The grants were allocated under President Joe Biden's signature Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, an anti-gun violence law signed after the mass school shooting in Uvalde, Texas. —Oren Oppenheim, ABC News, 9 Sep. 2025

The board placed the task of arts grants distribution into the hands of the Parks and Culture Committee and decided to transition its distribution formula to one that divided the total pot of arts funding allocated in the county budget equally among all qualified groups, Tarantino said. —Claudia Levens, jsonline.com, 8 Sep. 2025

This will include efficiently allocating resources, compliance and regulatory monitoring and many administrative tasks. —Bernard Marr, Forbes.com, 8 Sep. 2025

The remaining core value of the old trust will be allocated to new trusts benefiting Lachlan Murdoch and Rupert Murdoch’s youngest daughters, Grace and Chloe (children with ex-wife Wendi Deng), creating control through their vehicle, LGC Holdco, LLC. —Nick Lichtenberg, Fortune, 8 Sep. 2025

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from Medieval Latin allocātus, past participle of allocāre "to place, stow, hire out, place on hire, allow, admit, credit," from Latin ad- ad- + locāre "to place, situate" — more at locate

First Known Use

1616, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing allocate

• sub-allocate

Rhymes for allocate

• abdicate
• abrogate
• acetate
• activate
• actuate
• adsorbate
• aggravate
• agitate
• alginate
• alienate
• amputate
• angulate

Kids Definition

allocate

verb

al·​lo·​cate ˈal-ə-ˌkāt 

allocated; allocating

1

: to divide and distribute for a special reason or to particular persons or things

allocate funds among charities

2

: to set apart for a particular purpose

allocate materials for a project

allocation

ˌal-ə-ˈkā-shən 

noun