Convocates

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. Summons a group of people together formally, often for a meeting, council or assembly held at a set time
2. Gathers members of an organization or body into one place by an official summons or notice
3. Brings a number of persons together by formal call, typically to deliberate, vote or receive instructions

Etymology: "Convocates" is the third-person singular present form of "convocate," which means to call together formally, so its history belongs to that verb. "Convocate" was borrowed from the Latin "convocatus," the past participle of "convocare," meaning "to call together." That Latin verb combines "com-," meaning "together," with "vocare," "to call," the same root that gives English "vocal" and "vocation." The verb is a doublet of "convoke," meaning that the two words descend from the same Latin source but reached English by different routes and took on different shapes. "Convoke" is the more familiar of the pair, and "convocate" is the rarer, more Latinate sibling that keeps the older participial ending.

Synonyms: summon, convene, convoke, assemble, call together

Antonyms: disperse, dismiss, scatter