adj · verb · 14 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot
Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.
Sound
Pronunciation
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Received-Pronunciation:/ɹəʊˈteɪt/
Received-Pronunciation:/ɹəˈteɪt/
General-American:/ˈɹoʊ.teɪt/
US:Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
India, North:/roˈʈeʈ/
India, North:[ɾoː.ʈeːʈ]
India, South:/rɵˈʈeʈ/
India, South:[ɾö.ʈeːʈ]
rhymes with -eɪt
CMU ARPABET:R OW1 T EY2 T
Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.
1
adj
Meaning 1
Having the parts spreading out like a wheel; wheel-shaped.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: not-comparable
Examples
a rotate spicule or scale; a rotate corolla
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
2
verb
Meaning 2
To spin, turn, or revolve.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: intransitive
Examples
He rotated in his chair to face me.
The earth rotates.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
3
verb
Meaning 3
To advance through a sequence; to take turns.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: intransitive
Examples
The nurses' shifts rotate each week.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
4
verb
Meaning 4
To lift the nose during takeoff, just prior to liftoff.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: intransitive
Examples
The aircraft rotates at sixty knots.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
5
verb
Meaning 5
To spin, turn, or revolve something.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: transitive
Examples
Rotate the dial to the left.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
6
verb
Meaning 6
To advance something through a sequence; to allocate or deploy in turns.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: transitive
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
7
verb
Meaning 7
To replace older materials or to place older materials in front of newer ones so that older ones get used first.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: transitive
Examples
The supermarket rotates the stock daily so that old foods don't sit around.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
8
verb
Meaning 8
To grow or plant (crops) in a certain order.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: transitive
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
9
verb
Meaning 9
plant or grow in a fixed cyclic order of succession
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
Examples
We rotate the crops so as to maximize the use of the soil
Borrowed from Latin rotātus, perfect passive participle of rotō (“revolve”) (see -ate (verb-forming suffix) and -ate (adjective-forming suffix)), from rota (“wheel”) + -ō (verb-forming suffix).
Across languages
Translations
94 source translations are retained for this English entry.
Chinese Mandarin:
輪狀 /轮状
(lúnzhuàng)
— wheel-shaped
Armenian:
պտտվել
(pttvel)
— to spin, turn, or revolve
Azerbaijani:
fırlanmaq
— to spin, turn, or revolve
Belarusian:
абарача́цца
(abaračácca)
— to spin, turn, or revolve
Belarusian:
абараці́цца
(abaracícca)
— to spin, turn, or revolve
Belarusian:
абярну́цца
(abjarnúcca)
— to spin, turn, or revolve
Bulgarian:
въртя се
(vǎrtja se)
— to spin, turn, or revolve
Cherokee:
ᎠᏗᏆᎸᏕᏲᎭ
(adiqualvdeyoha)
— to spin, turn, or revolve
Chinese Mandarin:
旋转
— to spin, turn, or revolve
Chinese Mandarin:
转动
— to spin, turn, or revolve
Czech:
otočit
— to spin, turn, or revolve
Dutch:
roteren
— to spin, turn, or revolve
Dutch:
ronddraaien
— to spin, turn, or revolve
Finnish:
pyöriä
— to spin, turn, or revolve
Finnish:
pyörittää
— to spin, turn, or revolve
Finnish:
kääntyä
— to spin, turn, or revolve
French:
tourner
— to spin, turn, or revolve
French:
rotationner
— to spin, turn, or revolve
French:
rotater
— to spin, turn, or revolve
Galician:
xirar
— to spin, turn, or revolve
German:
sich drehen
— to spin, turn, or revolve
German:
rotieren
— to spin, turn, or revolve
Greek:
περιστρέφομαι
(peristréfomai)
— to spin, turn, or revolve
White Hmong:
tig
— to spin, turn, or revolve
Hungarian:
pörög
— to spin, turn, or revolve
Hungarian:
forog
— to spin, turn, or revolve
Ingrian:
pööriä
— to spin, turn, or revolve
Italian:
ruotare
— to spin, turn, or revolve
Japanese:
回る
(mawaru)
— to spin, turn, or revolve
Central Kurdish:
چەرخاندن
(çerxandin)
— to spin, turn, or revolve
Central Kurdish:
سوراندن
(surandin)
— to spin, turn, or revolve
Kyrgyz:
айлануу
(aylanuu)
— to spin, turn, or revolve
Malayalam:
തിരിയുക
(tiriyuka)
— to spin, turn, or revolve
Malayalam:
കറങ്ങുക
(kaṟaṅṅuka)
— to spin, turn, or revolve
Norwegian Bokmål:
rotere
— to spin, turn, or revolve
Norwegian Nynorsk:
rotere
— to spin, turn, or revolve
Pashto:
تاوول
(tāwawəl)
— to spin, turn, or revolve
Pashto:
څرخول
(carkhawəl)
— to spin, turn, or revolve
Persian:
چرخیدن
(čarxīdan)
— to spin, turn, or revolve
Polish:
obrócić się
— to spin, turn, or revolve
Polish:
obracać się
— to spin, turn, or revolve
Portuguese:
rotar
— to spin, turn, or revolve
Portuguese:
girar
— to spin, turn, or revolve
Portuguese:
rotacionar
— to spin, turn, or revolve
Portuguese:
rodar
— to spin, turn, or revolve
Quechua:
muyuy
— to spin, turn, or revolve
Romanian:
roti
— to spin, turn, or revolve
Russian:
враща́ться
(vraščátʹsja)
— to spin, turn, or revolve
Russian:
верте́ться
(vertétʹsja)
— to spin, turn, or revolve
Russian:
крути́ться
(krutítʹsja)
— to spin, turn, or revolve
Spanish:
girar
— to spin, turn, or revolve
Swedish:
rotera
— to spin, turn, or revolve
Telugu:
భ్రమించు
(bhramiñcu)
— to spin, turn, or revolve
Telugu:
పరిభ్రమించు
(paribhramiñcu)
— to spin, turn, or revolve
Thai:
หมุน
(mǔn)
— to spin, turn, or revolve
Thai:
หัน
(hǎn)
— to spin, turn, or revolve
Ottoman Turkish:
دونمك
(dönmek)
— to spin, turn, or revolve
Bulgarian:
редувам се
(reduvam se)
— to advance through a sequence; to take turns
Chinese Mandarin:
轮换
(lúnhuàn)
— to advance through a sequence; to take turns
Chinese Mandarin:
轮流
(lúnliú)
— to advance through a sequence; to take turns
Finnish:
vuorotella
— to advance through a sequence; to take turns
Greek:
εναλλάσσομαι
(enallássomai)
— to advance through a sequence; to take turns
Malayalam:
കറങ്ങുക
(kaṟaṅṅuka)
— to advance through a sequence; to take turns
Norwegian Bokmål:
rotere
— to advance through a sequence; to take turns
Norwegian Nynorsk:
rotere
— to advance through a sequence; to take turns
Swedish:
rotera
— to advance through a sequence; to take turns
Arabic:
أَدَارَ
(ʔadāra)
— to spin, turn, or revolve something
Armenian:
պտտել
(pttel)
— to spin, turn, or revolve something
Bulgarian:
въртя
(vǎrtja)
— to spin, turn, or revolve something
Finnish:
kääntää
— to spin, turn, or revolve something
French:
faire tourner
— to spin, turn, or revolve something
Greek:
περιστρέφω
(peristréfo)
— to spin, turn, or revolve something
White Hmong:
tig
— to spin, turn, or revolve something
Hungarian:
forgat
— to spin, turn, or revolve something
Hungarian:
pörget
— to spin, turn, or revolve something
Japanese:
回る
(mawaru)
— to spin, turn, or revolve something
Malayalam:
തിരിക്കുക
(tirikkuka)
— to spin, turn, or revolve something
Malayalam:
കറക്കുക
(kaṟakkuka)
— to spin, turn, or revolve something
Polish:
obrócić
— to spin, turn, or revolve something
Polish:
obracać
— to spin, turn, or revolve something
Portuguese:
rotar
— to spin, turn, or revolve something
Portuguese:
girar
— to spin, turn, or revolve something
Portuguese:
rotacionar
— to spin, turn, or revolve something
Portuguese:
rodar
— to spin, turn, or revolve something
Russian:
враща́ть
(vraščátʹ)
— to spin, turn, or revolve something
Russian:
верте́ть
(vertétʹ)
— to spin, turn, or revolve something
Russian:
крути́ть
(krutítʹ)
— to spin, turn, or revolve something
Swedish:
vända
— to spin, turn, or revolve something
Thai:
หมุน
(mǔn)
— to spin, turn, or revolve something
Thai:
หัน
(hǎn)
— to spin, turn, or revolve something
Bulgarian:
редувам
(reduvam)
— to advance something through a sequence
Bulgarian:
въртя
(vǎrtja)
— to change which tire is on each corner of the car, so that they wear evenly
French:
intervertir
— to change which tire is on each corner of the car, so that they wear evenly
French:
permuter
— to change which tire is on each corner of the car, so that they wear evenly
