The act of speaking words aloud for someone else to write down, or the words that are spoken for writing.
From Latin 'dictare' meaning 'to say repeatedly' or 'dictate,' derived from 'dicere' meaning 'to say,' the word entered English describing the formal practice of oral transmission of information.
Dictation is how most ancient literature was created—scribes would write down Homer's epics or biblical texts as people recited them, meaning thousands of years of human knowledge depended on people's memories and writing speed.
Dictation was coded as masculine authority (executive dictating to subordinates). The secretary role, historically feminized, was framed as passive reception rather than skilled labor, obscuring women's linguistic and organizational contributions.
Use neutrally; recognize that transcribing speech, managing information flow, and note-taking require expertise regardless of who performs the role.
Women shorthand typists and secretaries developed advanced linguistic and organizational skills that were systematically undervalued and excluded from professional recognition.
Complete word intelligence in one call. Free tier — 50 lookups/day.