relegate
verb
rel·e·gate
ˈre-lə-ˌgāt 
relegated; relegating
1
: to send into exile : banish
2
: assign: such as
a
: to assign to a place of insignificance or of oblivion : put out of sight or mind
b
: to assign to an appropriate place or situation on the basis of classification or appraisal
c
: to submit to someone or something for appropriate action : delegate
d
: to transfer (a sports team) to a lower ranking division
Did you know?
Originally relegate meant "to send into exile, banish". So when you relegate an old sofa to the basement, you're sending it to home-decorating Siberia. When confronted with a matter that no one really wants to face, a chief executive may relegate it to a committee "for further study", which may manage to ignore it for years. It may be annoying to read a newspaper article about a pet project and find that your own contributions have been relegated to a short sentence near the end.
Examples of relegate in a Sentence
The bill has been relegated to committee for discussion.
courtiers and generals who incurred the emperor's disfavor were soon relegated to the farther reaches of the empire
Recent Examples on the Web
The Brazilian Grand Prix, in particular, was eventful with Norris taking a victory in the sprint race and Verstappen receiving a 5-second penalty, relegating him from P3 to P4 behind Oscar Piastri and Charles Leclerc, in that order.
—
David Faris, Newsweek, 2 Nov. 2024
Many Republicans expect that Johnson wouldn’t be elected to leadership if the GOP is relegated to the House minority.
—Alexis Simendinger, The Hill, 1 Nov. 2024
The Penguin's Falcone is every bit the misogynistic brute, but his actions are relegated to the off-screen imagination by being implied, rather than shown.
—Ryan Coleman, EW.com, 24 Oct. 2024
Anime and manga, which now populates about half the floor, was once relegated to only a small area.
—Marc Berman, Forbes, 21 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for relegate 
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David Faris, Newsweek, 2 Nov. 2024
Many Republicans expect that Johnson wouldn’t be elected to leadership if the GOP is relegated to the House minority.
—Alexis Simendinger, The Hill, 1 Nov. 2024
The Penguin's Falcone is every bit the misogynistic brute, but his actions are relegated to the off-screen imagination by being implied, rather than shown.
—Ryan Coleman, EW.com, 24 Oct. 2024
Anime and manga, which now populates about half the floor, was once relegated to only a small area.
—Marc Berman, Forbes, 21 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for relegate
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Cite this Entry
“Relegate.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/relegate. Accessed 22 Nov. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
relegate
verb
rel·e·gate
ˈrel-ə-ˌgāt
relegated; relegating
1
: to remove or dismiss to a less important place
relegate some old books to the attic
2
: to refer or hand over for decision or carrying out
relegate that matter to a special committee
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