iterate

English

Etymology

The adjective is first attested in 1471, in Middle English, the verb in 1533, the noun in 1941; partly inherited from Middle English iterat(e) (adjective), partly borrowed from Latin iterātus, perfect passive participle of iterō (“to do something for a second time, repeat”) (see -ate (etymology 1, 2 and 3)) , from iterum (“again”) +‎ -ō. Sporadical participial usage of the adjective up until Early Modern English.

Pronunciation

verb

• (UK) IPA^(key): /ˈɪtəɹeɪt/, /ˈaɪtəɹeɪt/

  • Audio (Southern England):

    (file)

• (US, Canada) IPA^(key): /ˈɪtəɹeɪt/, [ˈɪɾəɹeɪt]
• (General Australian) IPA^(key): /ˈɪtəɹæɪt/, [ˈɪɾəɹæɪt]

noun

• IPA^(key): /ˈɪtərət/

Verb

iterate (third-person singular simple present iterates, present participle iterating, simple past and past participle iterated)

1. (computing) To perform or repeat an action on each item in a set.

   Synonyms: reiterate; see also Thesaurus:reiterate

   The max() function iterates through the data to find the highest value.

2. (computing, mathematics) To perform or repeat an action on the results of each such prior action.

   In mathematics, an iterated function is a function which is composed with itself, possibly ad infinitum, in a process called iteration.

3. (transitive, archaic) To utter or do a second time or many times; to repeat.

   to iterate advice

   • 1667, John Milton, “Book VIII”, in Paradise Lost. […], London: […] [Samuel Simmons], and are to be sold by Peter Parker […]; [a]nd by Robert Boulter […]; [a]nd Matthias Walker, […], →OCLC; republished as Paradise Lost in Ten Books: […], London: Basil Montagu Pickering […], 1873, →OCLC:

     Nor Eve to iterate / Her former trespass feared.

   • 1842, William Leman Rede, The Royal Rake: and the Adventures of Alfred Chesterton, page 25:

     "Where's your money?" Jack exclaimed, hoarsely, in a well-feigned voice.
     "Ah! where's the rowdy?" iterated Clayton, in a tone it was impossible to conceal.

4. (design, ambitransitive) To repeat an activity, making incremental changes each time.
   • December 13 2021, Molly Ball, Jeffrey Kluger, Alejandro de la Garza, “Elon Musk: Person of the Year 2021”, in Time Magazine‎^[1], archived from the original on 13 December 2021:

     For NASA and most private aerospace companies, a single crash is a setback that can take years to recover from. SpaceX works more like a Silicon Valley startup, where the goal is to fail quickly and iterate.

Derived terms

• iteratee
• iterator
• noniterated

Related terms

• iteration
• iterative
• reiterate

Translations

To utter or do a second time

• Bulgarian: повта́рям (bg) (povtárjam)
• French: itérer (fr)
• Spanish: iterar (es)

Noun

iterate (plural iterates)

1. (mathematics) An n-fold self-composition of a function.
   • 2011, M. A. Kaashoek, T. T. West, Locally Compact Semi-Algebras, page 8:

     An important example of such a semigroup in infinite dimensional Hilbert space is the weak operator closed monothetic semigroup generated by a linear operator with equibounded iterates.

2. (mathematics) The image of a certain value under such a function.

   f²(x₀) is the second iterate of x₀ under f.

Adjective

iterate (not comparable) (obsolete)

1. Said or done again; repeated.

   Synonym: see Thesaurus:repeated

   • 1657, William Morice, Coena quasi koinē‎^[2]:

     When our faith is otherwise well enough known, there needs no iterate confession, saith Baldwin, which if, as he saith, it be vain boasting rather than a Christian vertue in us to offer it, it can be no lesse than needlesse, imperious usurpation in them to call as to it.

2. (as a participle) Iterated.
   • 1558, Thomas Watson, Sermon V, of the Sacrament of Confirmation, in Holsome and catholyke doctryne concerninge the seuen Sacramentes of Chrystes Church expedient to be knowen of all men, set forth in maner of shorte sermons to bee made to the people‎^[3], page XXVIII:

     Therfore I beseche you brethren doe not neglect this holsome & profitable sacrament, but diligently consyder what ayde and what grace is geuen vnto you in it, & if by your necgligence & fal ye haue lost that grace, for a great part: yet it may be recouered agayne, not by a newe Confirmation, which may not be iterate, but by your inward conuersion & faythfull penaunce, and after ye bee risen and haue recouered your strength agayne, than take better hede, and do not make heauye, nor dryue not a∣way the holy ghost from you, who flieth alwaies from fained ypocrisy & wil not dwel in that body that is subiect and seruaunt to synne

Further reading

• “iterate”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.
• William Dwight Whitney, Benjamin E[li] Smith, editors (1911), “iterate”, in The Century Dictionary […], New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., →OCLC.
• “iterate”, in OneLook Dictionary Search.

Anagrams

• ariette

Italian

Etymology 1

Verb

iterate

1. inflection of iterare:
   1. second-person plural present indicative
   2. second-person plural imperative

Etymology 2

Participle

iterate f pl

1. feminine plural of iterato

Anagrams

• ariette, iettare, ietterà

Latin

Verb

iterāte

1. second-person plural present active imperative of iterō

Spanish

Verb

iterate

1. second-person singular voseo imperative of iterar combined with te