dictate

/ˈdik-ˌtāt/

borrowed from Latin dictātus, past participle of dictāre "to say repeatedly, speak aloud words to be transcribed by another, issue as an order," frequentative of dīcere "to talk, speak, say, utter"

verb

  1. to utter words to be transcribed : to give dictation

  2. to speak or act domineeringly : prescribe

  3. to speak or read for a person to transcribe or for a machine to record

dictate for the stenographer

noun

  1. an authoritative rule, prescription, or injunction

  2. a ruling principle

  3. a command by one in authority

the dictates of the party

according to the dictates of your conscience

phrasal verb

  1. to give orders to (someone) —usually used as (be) dictated to