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REFERENCE

dispatch

v. · n.
US //dɪˈspætʃ// UK //dɪspˈætʃ// dis·patch
  1. 1 to send goods or people (v.)
    B2 Upper Intermediate

    to send a person, a message, or a package to a specific place for a reason.

    to send off a person, message, or shipment to a specific destination for a particular purpose. Transitive; requires a direct object.

    Example

    The company will dispatch your order as soon as they receive the payment.

    Example

    The rescue center decided to dispatch a helicopter to the remote mountainside after receiving the distress signal from the stranded hikers.
  2. 2 to complete quickly (v.)
    C1 Advanced Formal

    to deal with a task or a problem quickly and effectively.

    to dispose of a task, business matter, or opponent with speed and efficiency.

    Example

    She dispatched the morning's emails in less than an hour.

    Example

    The champion dispatched his opponent in the first round, demonstrating a level of technical skill that left the commentators speechless.
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  1. 3 to kill (v.)
    C1 Advanced Literary Formal

    to kill a person or animal quickly.

    to put to death or execute with speed and efficiency. Often used in a clinical or detached manner.

    Example

    The hunter dispatched the injured deer to end its suffering.

    Example

    In the final chapter of the novel, the protagonist dispatches the villain with a single, decisive blow before escaping the crumbling castle.
  2. 4 computing (v.)
    C2 Proficiency Technical Computing

    to send a task or data to a specific part of a computer to be processed.

    to assign a process or task to a specific resource, such as a CPU or a handler, for execution.

    Example

    The operating system must dispatch tasks to the processor efficiently.

    Example

    The kernel uses a sophisticated algorithm to dispatch threads to available cores, ensuring optimal load balancing across the system.
  3. 5 an official report (n.)
    C1 Advanced Formal

    an important report or message sent by a journalist or a government official.

    an official report or communication sent with speed, typically by a diplomat, military officer, or news correspondent.

    Example

    The war correspondent sent a daily dispatch from the front lines.

    Example

    The ambassador's secret dispatch reached the ministry just hours before the peace treaty was scheduled to be signed.
  4. 6 speed and efficiency (n.)
    C1 Advanced Formal

    the act of doing something very quickly.

    promptness and efficiency in performance or transmission.

    Example

    The government acted with great dispatch to provide aid after the flood.

    Example

    The board of directors appreciated the dispatch with which the legal team resolved the potential merger conflict.
Origin

Borrowed from Spanish despachar or Italian dispacciare, replacing alternate reflex depeach, which is from French dépêcher. Further, several steps omitting, from Latin dis- + impedicō (whence impeach). The first known use in writing (in the past tense, spelled as dispached) is by Bishop Cuthbert Tunstall in 1517. This would be unusually early for a borrowing from a Romance language other than French, but Tunstall had studied in Italy and was Commissioner to Spain, so this word may have been borrowed through diplomatic circles. The alternative spelling despatch was introduced in Samuel Johnson's dictionary, probably by accident. Compare typologically deliver (for the meaning to bring or transport) (< Latin dē- + līberō).

Word family

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