operate

  1. Verb.  To perform a work or labour; to exert power or strength, physical or mechanical; to act.
  2. Verb.  To produce an appropriate physical effect; to issue in the result designed by nature; especially (Med.), to take appropriate effect on the human system.
  3. Verb.  To act or produce effect on the mind; to exert moral power or influence.
  4. Verb.  (medicine) To perform some manual act upon a human body in a methodical manner, and usually with instruments, with a view to restore soundness or health, as in amputation, lithotomy, etc.
  5. Verb.  To deal in stocks or any commodity with a view to speculative profits.
  6. Verb.  To produce, as an effect; to cause.
  7. Verb.  To put into, or to continue in, operation or activity; to work; as, to operate a machine.

This is an unmodified, but possibly outdated, definition from Wiktionary and used here under the Creative Commons license. Wiktionary is a great resource. If you like it too, please donate to Wikimedia.

This entry was last updated on RefTopia from its source on 3/20/2012.