execute

See also: exécuté and exécute

English

Alternative forms

• exequte, exequute, exsecute, exsequute (obsolete)

Etymology

From Old French executer (French exécuter), from Latin exsecutus, past participle of exsequor (“to follow (up/through)”, particularly in the sense “to go through with a deed or punishment”), from ex- (“out”) + sequor (“to follow”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈɛksɪˌkjuːt/, /ˈɛɡzɪˌkjuːt/

  • Audio (US):

    (file)

• (Indic) IPA^(key): /ɛɡzɪˈk̬juʈ/
• Hyphenation: ex‧e‧cute

Verb

execute (third-person singular simple present executes, present participle executing, simple past and past participle executed)

1. (transitive) To kill, especially as punishment for a capital crime.

   Coordinate term: murder

   There are certain states where it is lawful to execute prisoners convicted of certain crimes.

   According to international treaties, it is illegal to execute prisoners of war.

   • 1591 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The First Part of Henry the Sixt”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act II, scene iv], page 104, column 1:

     Was not thy Father, Richard, Earle of Cambridge, / For Treaſon executed in our late Kings dayes?

2. (transitive) To carry out; to put into effect.

   Your orders have been executed, sir!

   I'll execute your orders as soon as this meeting is adjourned.

   • 1667, John Milton, “Book IX”, 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:

     Why delays / His hand to execute what his decree / Fixed on this day?

3. (transitive) To perform.

   to execute a difficult piece of music brilliantly

   to execute a turn in ballet

   • 1989 February 12, Escalating Peace: A Next Step To Resist Global Violence, “George Jarret”, in Gay Community News, volume 16, number 30, page 5:

     Affinity groups will plan and execute nonviolent actions to both symbolically and directly challenge weapons development.

4. (transitive, law) To carry out, to perform an act; to put into effect or cause to become legally binding or valid (as a contract) by so doing.

   to execute a contract

5. (transitive, computing) To start, launch, or run.

   Synonyms: start, launch, run, open

   to execute a program

6. (intransitive, computing) To run, usually successfully.

   The program executed, but data problems were discovered.

Synonyms

• See also Thesaurus:kill

Derived terms

• electrocute
• executability
• executable
• executed
• execute order
• execution
• executioner
• executive
• executor
• executrix
• executry
• misexecute
• nonexecuted
• nonexecuting
• outexecute
• reexecute
• self-executing
• unexecute
• unexecuted

Translations

to kill as punishment

Albanian: ekzekutoj (sq) Arabic: أَعْدَمَ (ʔaʕdama) Armenian: please add this translation if you can Assyrian Neo-Aramaic: ܡܲܡܝܸܬ݂ (mamyiṯ) Azerbaijani: edam etmək Belarusian: кара́ць сме́рцю impf (karácʹ smjércju), пакара́ць сме́рцю pf (pakarácʹ smjércju) Bulgarian: екзекути́рам impf or pf (ekzekutíram) Catalan: executar (ca) Chichewa: kufétsa, kunyónga Chinese: Mandarin: 處決 / 处决 (zh) (chǔjué), 處死 / 处死 (zh) (chǔsǐ) Czech: popravit (cs) pf Danish: henrette Dutch: executeren (nl) Esperanto: ekzekuti Estonian: hukkama Finnish: teloittaa (fi) French: exécuter (fr), mettre à mort (fr) Georgian: სიკვდილით დასჯა (siḳvdilit dasǯa) German: hinrichten (de), exekutieren (de) Gothic: 𐌳𐌰𐌿𐌸𐌾𐌰𐌽 (dauþjan) Greek: εκτελώ (el) (ekteló), θανατώνω (el) (thanatóno) Ancient: θανατόω (thanatóō) Hebrew: להוציא להרוג Hungarian: kivégez (hu) Irish: básaigh Italian: giustiziare (it) Japanese: 処刑する (ja) (しょけいする, shokei suru), 消す (ja) (けす, kesu) (slang) Korean: 처형하다 (ko) (cheohyeonghada) Latin: carnificō, ad necum mittō Latvian: please add this translation if you can Lithuanian: please add this translation if you can Macedonian: погубува impf (pogubuva), погуби pf (pogubi) Maori: whakamate Norman: exétchuter Norwegian: Bokmål: henrette (no) Nynorsk: avretta Persian: اعدام کردن (e'dâm kardan) Polish: stracać impf, stracić (pl) pf Portuguese: executar (pt) Quechua: hayratachiy Romanian: executa (ro) Russian: казни́ть (ru) impf or pf (kaznítʹ) Serbo-Croatian: Cyrillic: сма̀кнути pf, погу̀бити pf Roman: smàknuti (sh) pf, pogùbiti (sh) pf Slovak: popraviť pf Slovene: usmrtiti pf Spanish: ejecutar (es), ajusticiar (es), enrodar (es) (with a wheel) Swedish: avrätta (sv) Tagalog: ipapatay Thai: ประหาร (th) (bprà-hǎan) Turkish: idam etmek (tr) Ukrainian: стра́чувати impf (stráčuvaty), стра́тити pf (strátyty) Volapük: cödetadeidön (vo) Welsh: dienyddio (cy) Zazaki: idam kerden, dard kerden

to start a defined process and run it to completion

Arabic: نَفَّذَ (naffaḏa) Belarusian: выко́нваць impf (vykónvacʹ), вы́канаць pf (výkanacʹ) Bulgarian: изпълня́вам (bg) impf (izpǎlnjávam), изпъ́лня (bg) pf (izpǎ́lnja), извъ́ршвам (bg) impf (izvǎ́ršvam), извъ́рша (bg) pf (izvǎ́rša) Catalan: executar (ca) Chinese: Mandarin: 執行 / 执行 (zh) (zhíxíng), 運行 / 运行 (zh) (yùnxíng) Czech: konat (cs) impf, vykonávat (cs) impf, vykonat (cs) pf Danish: afvikle, udføre, eksekvere Dutch: bewerkstelligen (nl), uitvoeren (nl) Estonian: teostama, täitma (et) Finnish: toteuttaa (fi), panna toimeen (fi), panna täytäntöön French: exécuter (fr) Georgian: შესრულება (šesruleba), ასრულება (asruleba), სისრულეში მოყვანა (sisruleši moq̇vana) German: ausführen (de), durchführen (de) Greek: Ancient: ἐνεργέω (energéō) Hungarian: végrehajt (hu), teljesít (hu), elvégez (hu), megvalósít (hu), kivitelez (hu), (formal) foganatosít (hu) Ido: exekutar (io) Irish: cuir i bhfeidhm Japanese: 実行する (ja) (じっこうする, jikkō suru), 行う (ja) (おこなう, okonau) Khmer: ប្រតិបត្តិ (km) (prɑtebat) Korean: 실행하다 (ko) (silhaenghada), 행하다 (ko) (haenghada) Kurdish: Central Kurdish: بردن بەڕێوە (birdin berrêwe) Latin: fungor (la) Latvian: izpildīt Lithuanian: įvykdyti Maori: whakahaere Persian: انجامیدن (fa) Polish: wykonywać (pl) impf, wykonać (pl) pf Portuguese: executar (pt) Romanian: executa (ro) Russian: исполня́ть (ru) impf (ispolnjátʹ), испо́лнить (ru) pf (ispólnitʹ) Scottish Gaelic: cuir an gnìomh Serbo-Croatian: Cyrillic: извр́шити pf, про̀вести pf Roman: izvŕšiti (sh), pròvesti (sh) Slovak: vykonávať impf, vykonať pf Slovene: izvršiti pf Spanish: ejecutar (es) Swedish: verkställa (sv), expediera (sv), utföra (sv) Ukrainian: вико́нувати (uk) impf (vykónuvaty), ви́конати (uk) pf (výkonaty)

to start a defined process, without regard to whether it runs to completion or not

Arabic: نَفَّذَ (naffaḏa) Bulgarian: please add this translation if you can Catalan: executar (ca) Czech: provádět (cs) Danish: udføre, eksekvere, starte, påbegynde (da) Dutch: bewerkstelligen (nl), uitvoeren (nl) Finnish: aloittaa (fi), käynnistää (fi) Irish: cuir i bhfeidhm Polish: uruchomić (pl), rozpocząć (pl), zacząć (pl) Romanian: executa (ro) Russian: выполня́ть (ru) impf (vypolnjátʹ), вы́полнить (ru) pf (výpolnitʹ), исполня́ть (ru) impf (ispolnjátʹ), испо́лнить (ru) pf (ispólnitʹ) Scottish Gaelic: cuir an gnìomh Ukrainian: вико́нувати (uk) impf (vykónuvaty), ви́конати (uk) pf (výkonaty)

to carry out, to perform an act — see carry out,‎ perform

to start, launch or run software

Arabic: نَفَّذَ (naffaḏa) Bulgarian: изпълня́вам (bg) impf (izpǎlnjávam), изпъ́лня (bg) pf (izpǎ́lnja) Catalan: executar (ca), arrancar (ca), arrencar (ca) Danish: afvikle, udføre, eksekvere Dutch: uitvoeren (nl) Esperanto: plenumi (eo) Finnish: ajaa (fi), suorittaa (fi), käynnistää (fi) French: exécuter (fr) German: ausführen (de) Hungarian: futtat (hu) Icelandic: framkvæma Italian: lanciare (it) Norman: exétchuter Norwegian: Bokmål: kjøre (no), eksekvere Nynorsk: køyre, eksekvere Persian: اجرایدن Polish: uruchomić (pl), wystartować (pl), wykonać (pl) Portuguese: executar (pt), rodar (pt) Romanian: executa (ro) Russian: прогоня́ть (ru) impf (progonjátʹ), прогна́ть (ru) pf (prognátʹ), выполня́ть (ru) impf (vypolnjátʹ), вы́полнить (ru) pf (výpolnitʹ), запуска́ть (ru) impf (zapuskátʹ), запусти́ть (ru) pf (zapustítʹ) Slovene: zagnati Spanish: ejecutar (es), arrancar (es) Swedish: exekvera (sv), köra (sv) Ukrainian: запуска́ти impf (zapuskáty), запусти́ти pf (zapustýty)

to sign or otherwise cause a document (especially a contract) to become legally valid

Bulgarian: подписвам impf (podpisvam), подпиша pf (podpiša) Catalan: executar (ca) Finnish: saattaa voimaan Hungarian: végrehajt (hu), teljesít (hu) Russian: подпи́сывать (ru) impf (podpísyvatʹ), подписа́ть (ru) pf (podpisátʹ)

Latin

Pronunciation

• (Classical Latin) IPA^(key): [ɛk.sɛˈkuː.tɛ]
• (modern Italianate Ecclesiastical) IPA^(key): [eɡ.zeˈkuː.te]

Participle

execūte

1. vocative masculine singular of execūtus

Portuguese

Verb

execute

1. inflection of executar:
   1. first/third-person singular present subjunctive
   2. third-person singular imperative

Spanish

Verb

execute

1. inflection of executar:
   1. first/third-person singular present subjunctive
   2. third-person singular imperative