# allocate

Pronunciation: say "AL-uh-kayt" US /ˈæl.əˌkeɪt/, UK /ˈæl.ə.keɪt/, AUS /ˈæl.ə.kæɪt/

## Verb

1. To distribute something according to a plan, usually directing it to a particular person or purpose.
   - Simple: To give out money, time, or things to people or groups by following a plan.
   - _The board allocates revenue to regional offices according to a fixed formula._
   - _Managers allocate budgets to teams at the start of each quarter._
2. To set a portion of something aside, reserving it for a specific intended purpose.
   - Simple: To keep money, time, or space for one special use.
   - _The city allocated a large plot for the new park._
   - _We allocate time each week to review the team's progress._
3. In computing, to assign a block of memory to a program and reserve it for that program's use.
   - Simple: To set aside a part of a computer's memory for a program to use.
   - _The function allocates memory for the array before filling it with data._
   - _Programs must allocate enough memory to hold the entire dataset._

## Adjective

4. Assigned or set apart for a purpose. *(obsolete)*
   - Simple: Given or set apart for a special use.

## Noun

5. A writ that authorized a payment, allowance, or grant to be made. *(obsolete, UK)*
   - Simple: An old official paper that ordered a payment or grant to be made.
   - _The sheriff produced an allocate ordering the disbursement from the royal coffers._
   - _Each allocate had to bear the official seal before payment was made._

## Origin

**Meanings 1–3** — From Latin allocātus, the perfect passive participle of allocō, formed from ad- ("to") plus locō. It is a doublet of "allow."
**Meaning 4** — From Middle English allocat(e) ("allocated"), originally used as the past participle of allocate, going back to Latin allocātus (see Etymology 1).
**Meaning 5** — From Middle English allocate, the common first word of writs authorizing payment, from Medieval Latin allocātum, a noun form built from the neuter singular of allocātus. Alternatively, it comes from allocāte, the second-person plural imperative of allocō (compare English "liberate").

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/allocate (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).