/ ˈɪmplɪkeɪt; NAmE / verb [ vn ]
1.
implicate sb (in sth) to show or suggest that sb is involved in sth bad or criminal
SYN incriminate :
He tried to avoid saying anything that would implicate him further.
2.
implicate sth (in / as sth) to show or suggest that sth is the cause of sth bad :
The results implicate poor hygiene as one cause of the outbreak.
•
IDIOMS
- be implicated in sth
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WORD ORIGIN
late Middle English : from Latin implicatus folded in, past participle of implicare , from in- in + plicare to fold. The original sense was entwine ; compare with employ and imply . The earliest modern sense (to convey something indirectly), dates from the early 17th cent.