nictitate

UK:*UK and possibly other pronunciationsUK and possibly other pronunciations/ˈnɪktɪˌteɪt/US:USA pronunciation: respellingUSA pronunciation: respelling(nik′ti tāt′)


WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026
nic•ti•tate  (nik′ti tāt′),USA pronunciation v.i., -tat•ed, -tat•ing. 
  1. to wink.
Also, nic′tate. 
  • Medieval Latin nictitātus, past participle of nictitāre, frequentative of Latin nictāre to wink, frequentative of nicere to beckon; see -ate1
  • 1815–25
nic′ti•tant, adj. 

Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::
nictitate / ˈnɪktɪˌteɪt/, nictate / ˈnɪkteɪt/
  1. technical words for blink1
Etymology: 19th Century: from Medieval Latin nictitāre to wink repeatedly, from Latin nictāre to wink, from nicere to beckonˌnictiˈtation, nicˈtation
'nictitate' also found in these entries (note: many are not synonyms or translations):
connive

Forum discussions with the word(s) "nictitate" in the title:


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