delete
[dih-leet]
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verb (used with object), deleted, deleting.
1. to strike out or remove (something written or printed); cancel; erase; expunge.
Origin Expand
Latin
1485-1495
1485-95; < Latin dēlētus (past participle of dēlēre to destroy), equivalent to dēl- destroy + -ē- thematic vowel + -tus past participle suffix
Related forms Expand
deletable, adjective
redelete, verb (used with object), redeleted, redeleting.
undeleted, adjective
Synonyms Expand
eradicate. See cancel.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2015.
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Examples from the web for delete Expand
• Click the delete key to remove the current information.
• Once they appear here, they're here until you delete them.
• Citing the school's honor code, he instructed them to delete the test immediately.


British Dictionary definitions for delete Expand
delete
/dɪˈliːt/
verb
1. (transitive) to remove (something printed or written); erase; cancel; strike out
Word Origin
C17: from Latin dēlēre to destroy, obliterate
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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Word Origin and History for delete Expand
v.
late 15c., "destroy, eradicate," from Latin deletus, past participle of delere "destroy, blot out, efface," from delevi, originally perfective tense of delinere "to daub, erase by smudging" (as of the wax on a writing table), from de- "from, away" (see de- ) + linere "to smear, wipe" (see lime (n.1)). In English, specifically of written matter, from c.1600. Related: Deleted ; deleting.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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delete in Technology Expand

1. (Or "erase") To make a file inaccessible.
Usually this operation only deletes information from the tables the file system uses to locate named files; the file's contents still exist on disk and can sometimes be recovered by scanning the whole disk for strings which are known to have been in the file. Files created subsequently on the same disk are quite likely to reuse the same blocks and thus overwrite the deleted file's data permanently.
2. The control character with ASCII code 127. Usually entering this character from the keyboard deletes the last character typed from the input buffer. Sadly there is great confusion between operating systems and keyboard manufacturers as to whether this function should be assigned to the delete or backspace key/character.
The choice of code 127 (binary 1111111) is not arbitrary but dates back to the use of paper tape for input. The delete key rewound the tape by one character and punched out all seven holes, thus obliterating whatever character was there before. The tape reading software ignored any delete characters in the input.
(1996-12-01)

The Free On-line Dictionary of Computing, © Denis Howe 2010 http://foldoc.org
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