delete

verb

de·​lete di-ˈlēt 

dē-

deleted; deleting

transitive verb

: to eliminate especially by blotting out, cutting out, or erasing

delete a passage in a manuscript

delete a computer file

The email was accidentally deleted.

deletable

di-ˈlē-tə-bəl 

dē-

adjective

an easily deletable photo

Synonyms

• blue-pencil
• cancel
• cross (out)
• dele
• edit (out)
• elide
• kill
• scratch (out)
• strike (out)
• stroke (out)
• x (out)

Examples of delete in a Sentence

Delete this name from the list.

When the movie was shown on TV all the swearwords had been deleted.

Recent Examples on the Web

Officials from Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency deleted the CFPB’s X account on Friday night, a person familiar with the matter told CNN, after Russell Vought, who leads the Office of Management and Budget, took over as acting director of the CFPB. —Matt Egan, CNN, 9 Feb. 2025

Many of these are unfiltered forums that have no consequences for behaviors from users outside of deleting a post long after it has been seen by many. —Dan Olberg, Twin Cities, 7 Feb. 2025

The public reaction to it was so negative that Drake silently deleted an Instagram post promoting it. —Candace McDuffie, Glamour, 7 Feb. 2025

Many of these photographs were deleted during a Jan. 10 traffic stop involving the suspects, according to the federal complaint. —Aaron Katersky, ABC News, 7 Feb. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Latin deletus, past participle of delēre to wipe out, destroy

First Known Use

1540, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing delete

• delete key

Kids Definition

delete

verb

de·​lete di-ˈlēt 

deleted; deleting

: to eliminate especially by blotting out, cutting out, or erasing

delete a part of the story

delete a computer file

deletion

di-ˈlē-shən

noun