To place; to set in a particular spot or position.
"The librarian carefully located each book on its designated shelf before closing up for the day."
In plain English: To locate something means to find exactly where it is.
"We need to locate the missing keys before we can leave the house."
Usage: Use locate to mean finding something's position rather than placing it there. If you are putting an object in a specific spot, use place or put instead.
Example Sentences
"We need to locate the missing keys before we can leave the house."verb
"I need to locate my keys before leaving for work."verb
"The treasure hunter spent years trying to locate the lost ship."verb
"Can you help me locate the nearest gas station?"verb
The word locate comes from the Latin verb locare, meaning "to place," which is derived from locus for "place." It entered English through the suffix -ate, carrying forward its original sense of putting something in a specific spot.