as in to trigger
to cause to function
the thermostat is set to activate the heating system only when the temperature drops below 65 degrees
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Recent Examples of activate
Freeman can be activated as early as next Thursday.
—
Newsweek Staff, MSNBC Newsweek, 4 Apr. 2025
World’s smallest pacemaker is activated by light This tiny pacemaker is powered by a galvanic cell, which transforms chemical energy derived from biofluids in contact with it inside the body into pulses of electricity sent to the heart through two metal electrodes.
—New Atlas, 4 Apr. 2025
The Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency recently issued a joint advisory warning that two-factor authentication needed to be activated for all webmail and VPN accounts as a matter of urgency.
—Davey Winder, Forbes, 22 Mar. 2025
New users can sign up through our links to activate this welcome offer in time for second round action over the weekend.
—Thomas G. Moukawsher, Newsweek, 22 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for activate
Newsweek Staff, MSNBC Newsweek, 4 Apr. 2025
World’s smallest pacemaker is activated by light This tiny pacemaker is powered by a galvanic cell, which transforms chemical energy derived from biofluids in contact with it inside the body into pulses of electricity sent to the heart through two metal electrodes.
—New Atlas, 4 Apr. 2025
The Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency recently issued a joint advisory warning that two-factor authentication needed to be activated for all webmail and VPN accounts as a matter of urgency.
—Davey Winder, Forbes, 22 Mar. 2025
New users can sign up through our links to activate this welcome offer in time for second round action over the weekend.
—Thomas G. Moukawsher, Newsweek, 22 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for activate
Recent Examples of Synonyms for activate
Verb
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But yeah, maybe she’s been a vegetarian this whole time and the proteins triggered something!—
Jackie Strause,
HollywoodReporter,
10 Apr. 2025
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Png predicts that a potential global recession resulting from the tariffs would be of a similar scale to the 2008 global financial crisis, which triggered an 18-month Great Recession and the worst global economic downturn since the Great Depression.—
Miranda Jeyaretnam,
Time,
9 Apr. 2025
Verb
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China’s defiant stance has sparked fears that countries will retaliate rather than negotiating with the U.S. Trump unveiled the tariffs Wednesday in a meandering White House Rose Garden news conference.—
Dade Hayes,
Deadline,
4 Apr. 2025
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Val Kilmer’s death on Tuesday has sparked reminders of the risks of pneumonia.—
Melissa Rudy,
FOXNews.com,
4 Apr. 2025
Verb
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Tate Beran drove in a pair of runs, while Ryan Kastor picked up his second save with two scoreless innings of relief.—
Paul Johnson,
Chicago Tribune,
9 Apr. 2025
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Comedian and car aficionado Jay Leno drove state Sen. Shannon Grove, R-Bakersfield, in a 1976 Pontiac Trans-Am past the state Capitol on Tuesday, rallying support for legislation that would ease restrictions on classic cars.—
HECTOR AMEZCUA,
Sacbee.com,
9 Apr. 2025
Verb
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That includes rare earth minerals, which are crucial to powering a plethora of modern consumer electronics devices.—
Mack DeGeurin,
Popular Science,
10 Apr. 2025
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While the brand’s Geneva show was all about watches, this one is about clocks, and specifically the Atmos, which launched in 1928, and is designed to tick for at least 1,000 years due to an energy-efficient, self-winding mechanism that’s powered by small changes in air temperature and pressure.—
Samantha Conti,
Footwear News,
9 Apr. 2025
Verb
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In Palm Beach, O’Connell was not shy about his belief that the Vikings must generate value from the 2025 draft class, regardless of the pick allotment.—
Alec Lewis,
New York Times,
8 Apr. 2025
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The 27-member bloc saw the largest fall in coal generation globally in 2024 and, for the first time, solar power generated more electricity than coal in the EU.—
New Atlas,
New Atlas,
8 Apr. 2025
Verb
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Eventually any discourse about his low batting average and moving him in the lineup evaporated as Judge finished with a .322 average, 58 homers and 144 RBIS, barely missing out on matching Mickey Mantle in the Triple Crown department.—
Larry Fleisher,
Forbes.com,
4 Apr. 2025
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He was appointed to the position in 2024 after longtime trustee Dan Bobrowski moved from the area and left the board.—
Jesse Wright,
Chicago Tribune,
3 Apr. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Activate.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/activate. Accessed 16 Apr. 2025.
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