commutate

C3O1M3M3U1T1A1T1E1

verb

To reverse the direction of (a current).

Scrabble 15

Meanings

verbcommutate (third-person singular simple present commutates, present participle commutating, simple past and past participle commutated)

present singular third person commutates · participle present commutating · participle past commutated · past commutated

  1. transitivebusinessTo reverse the direction of (a current).

    Continuously rated machines shall be required to commutate successfully momentary loads of 150% of the Amperes corresponding to the continuous rating keeping the rheostat set for rated load excitation.

    2013, Freidrich Nettel, Comparison of Principal Points of Standards for Electrical Machinea & Transformers: German, British, & American Standards compared, →ISBN, page 19
  2. transitivebusinessTo convert from being or using an alternating current into being or using a direct current.

    In line commutation, advantage of the a.c. supply going through zero value at every half-cycle is taken to commutate the thyristor.

    2009, S.K. Bhattacharya, Fundamentals Of Power Electronics, 1E, →ISBN, page 72
  3. intransitivemathematicsTo commute; to be invariant under a reversal of the positions of operands.

    The match of two finite line segments in 2 dimensions requires 2 translations, 1 rotation, 1 scale transformation; the order is here important, and these operators cannot commutate.

    2012, J. Kittler, V.W. Fu, L.F Pau, Pattern Recognition Theory and Applications, →ISBN, page 194
  4. transitivebusinessTo commute; to change one kind of payment into another, especially to convert from several installments to a single lumpsum payment.

    Ah, commutation. I knew there was something else. This is where you can commutate your weekly payments into a lump sum and be rid of the “system”.

    2012, Stewart, Workers Compensation: Rorting the System Or System Rorted?, →ISBN
  5. transitivelawTo remove or reduce the legal obligations or restrictions on

    Specifically, the seminary was challenged by industrial millers who petitioned to build steam-powered mills and by large Montreal property holders who demanded that the crown commutate their lands.

    1986, Brian J. Young, In Its Corporate Capacity: The Seminary of Montreal as a Business Institution 1816-1876., →ISBN, page 52
  6. transitiveTo transform, especially into a reversed or opposite form.

    Writers change the URIs as they compose because writers commutate and manipulate language to create a variety of rhetorical experiences that can be read at once, as overlapping, or as separate.

    2007, Jeff Rice, The Rhetoric of Cool: Composition Studies and New Media, →ISBN, page 123

Origin

Back-formation from commutation (in the late 19th century), as is commutator (noun) too.

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

commutate. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/commutate

MLA

“commutate.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/commutate. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “commutate,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/commutate.

Source: commutate on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.