What does "dedicate" mean?

1. (to commit time or effort) to give most of your energy, time, or attention to a person, job, or activity. 2. (to inscribe a book or art) to say at the beginning of a book or song that it was written for a specific person. 3. (to officially open a building) to hold a ceremony to officially open a new building or memorial. 4. (to set aside for a purpose) to save something, like money or space, for one particular use.

How do you use "dedicate"?

Commonly follows the pattern 'dedicate something/oneself to something'.

Is it correct to say "She dedicated to help the poor."?

No — say "She dedicated herself to helping the poor.". The verb is transitive; you must dedicate 'yourself' or 'your time' to something. Also, use the -ing form after 'to' in this context.

dedicate

US //ˈdɛdəˌkeɪt// UK //dˈɛdɪkˌeɪt// ded·i·cate

1 to commit time or effort (v.)
B2 Upper Intermediate

to give most of your energy, time, or attention to a person, job, or activity.

to devote oneself or one's resources to a particular task, cause, or person. Transitive, often used with the preposition 'to'.

Example

She decided to dedicate her life to helping children in need.

Example

The scientist dedicated her entire career to finding a cure for this rare disease, often working late into the night in her laboratory.

Usage

Commonly follows the pattern 'dedicate something/oneself to something'.
- neglect
- ignore
Pitfall

She dedicated to help the poor.

She dedicated herself to helping the poor.

The verb is transitive; you must dedicate 'yourself' or 'your time' to something. Also, use the -ing form after 'to' in this context.
2 to inscribe a book or art (v.)
B2 Upper Intermediate

to say at the beginning of a book or song that it was written for a specific person.

to address or inscribe a creative work to another person as a mark of respect, affection, or gratitude.

Example

The author chose to dedicate his first novel to his parents.

Example

In the opening pages, the composer dedicated the symphony to his mentor, acknowledging the profound influence the older man had on his style.
- inscribe
- address

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3 to officially open a building (v.)
C1 Advanced Formal

to hold a ceremony to officially open a new building or memorial.

to designate a building, monument, or park for a specific purpose or person through a formal ceremony.

Example

The city will dedicate the new park to the soldiers who died in the war.

Example

The archbishop arrived to dedicate the new cathedral, performing a traditional ceremony that lasted several hours before the public was admitted.
- consecrate
- sanctify
- open
4 to set aside for a purpose (v.)
B2 Upper Intermediate

to save something, like money or space, for one particular use.

to set apart or earmark a resource for a specific function or objective.

Example

The company will dedicate a large part of its budget to new technology.

Example

The urban planning committee decided to dedicate the northern section of the lot exclusively to low-income housing projects.
- allocate
- assign
- earmark

Etymology 1

From Middle English dedicaten (“to dedicate”), from dedicat(e) (“dedicated”, also used as the past participle of dedicaten) + -en (verb-forming suffix), from Latin dēdicātus, the perfect passive participle of dēdicō (“to dedicate, proclaim”), see -ate (verb-forming suffix).

Etymology 2

from Middle English dedicat(e) (“dedicated”, also used as the past participle of dedicaten), see -ate (adjective-forming suffix) and Etymology 1 for more. The nouns is derived through substantivization from Latin dēdicātus, see -ate (noun-forming suffix).