dilative
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di·late
(dī-lāt′, dī′lāt′)v. di·lat·ed, di·lat·ing, di·lates
v.tr.
To make wider or larger; cause to expand.
v.intr.
1. To become wider or larger; expand.
2. To speak or write at great length on a subject; expatiate.
[Middle English dilaten, from Old French dilater, from Latin dīlātāre, to enlarge : dī-, dis-, apart; see dis- + lātus, wide.]
di·lat′a·bil′i·ty n.
di·lat′a·ble adj.
di·lat′a·bly adv.
di·la′tive adj.
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.