The meaning of DILATE is to become enlarged or widened; also : to display or become affected by expansion or widening of a body part. How to use dilate in a sentence.

The pupils of the eyes dilate as darkness increases. This drug will dilate the arteries.

Dilate definition: to make wider or larger; cause to expand.. See examples of DILATE used in a sentence.

To dilate something is to make it wider. When the light fades, the pupil of your eye will dilate, meaning it looks bigger. The verb dilate comes from the Latin word dilatare, which means “enlarge” or “spread …

When things such as blood vessels or the pupils of your eyes dilate or when something dilates them, they become wider or bigger. At night, the pupils dilate to allow in more light.

Definition of dilate verb in Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary. Meaning, pronunciation, picture, example sentences, grammar, usage notes, synonyms and more.

1. to make wider or larger; expand: to dilate the pupils of the eyes. 2. Archaic. to describe or develop at length.

Oct 15, 2025 · dilate (third-person singular simple present dilates, present participle dilating, simple past and past participle dilated) (transitive) To enlarge; to make bigger. The eye doctor put drops in my …

Some common synonyms of dilate are amplify, distend, expand, inflate, and swell. While all these words mean "to increase in size or volume," dilate applies especially to expansion of circumference.

to (cause to) become wider, larger, or expanded: [no object] The cat's eyes dilated in the darkness. [~ + object] The medicine will dilate the blood vessels. di•la•tion /daɪˈleɪʃən/ n. [uncountable] See -lat-2.