Externate

/ɪkˈstɜrneɪt/ verb

Definition

To treat as external or external to; to place or consider something as being outside rather than inside.

Etymology

From external (Latin externus) + -ate (Latin suffix creating verbs). This is a rare, specialized term developed to create a verb form parallel to 'internate'.

Kelly Says

While 'externate' is extremely rare in modern English, it shows how productive Latin suffixes allow us to create new words—we can 'externate' a problem by treating it as someone else's responsibility, though we might just call it 'externalizing' instead.

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