From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishparticipatepar‧tic‧i‧pate /pɑːˈtɪsəpeɪt $ pɑːr-/ ●●○ W3 AWL verb [intransitive] formalTAKE PART/BE INVOLVED to take part in an activity or event Some members refused to participate.participate in Everyone in the class is expected to participate actively in these discussions. They welcomed the opportunity to participate fully in the life of the village. ► Participate is never followed immediately by a noun, or by ‘on’ or ‘to’. Say that you participate in something: More people should participate in elections (NOT More people should participate elections).RegisterIn everyday English, people usually say take part rather than participate: She refused to take part in any of the activities.THESAURUSparticipate formal to do an activity together with other peopleHe always participates in classroom activities. The people should have the right to participate in discussions about their future.There are many ways people can participate in sports.Who will be participating?take part to participate in something. Take part is less formal that participate and is more common in everyday EnglishNearly 500 teams took part in the competition.She was asked to take part in a TV debate on drugs.Anyone who is over 18 can take part.play a part/role to take part in something in a useful wayEveryone can play a part in improving the security of their neighborhood.Schneider played a key role in getting the organization started.be involved to take part in an activity in some wayHe has denied being involved in the murder.It was a big project and many people were involved.be active in something to actively take part in the work of an organization such as a political group or churchHe is very active in the church’s work with homeless people.She is no longer active in politics.compete to take part in a competition or raceAthletes from all over the world will be competing.She’s hoping to compete in the Olympic Games. → See Verb table
Examples from the Corpus
participate• Being a spectator wasn't as enjoyable as participating.• There are regular class discussions, but some of the students never participate.• We asked a company spokesman to join the debate, but he refused to participate.• Essential equipment to enable a child to participate in a group may be provided, opportunities for training may be shared.• Members can participate in any of the trips organized by the club.• But he grew up in a dramatic era and his paintings participate in it.• Almost 90 million members have participated in its nine decades.• Until now the Bush administration has refused to participate in such a programme.• Our employees are encouraged to participate in the decision making process.• However, when the results of the referendum were known, it agreed to participate in the new system.• In addition, when employees participated in the problem-solving process-they were much more willing to implement solutions to the problems.• Over 300 local firms participated in the survey.• Instead, separate Centers of Competence explored issues of interest to the consultants who participated in them.• Each participating State will provide for its legislative approval of defence expenditures.participate in• More than 400 children participated in a clean-up of the park.From Longman Business Dictionaryparticipatepar‧tic‧i‧pate /pɑːˈtɪsəpeɪtpɑːr-/ verb [intransitive]1if someone participates in the management of a company, they help make important decisions, for example by being on the BOARD OF DIRECTORSparticipate inInvestors can participate in the management of the company they invest in, but must keep ownership at less than 50%.2HUMAN RESOURCES if employees of a company participate in its profits, they receive part of themparticipate inThe workers have a stake in the corporation’s success and they participate in its growth and profits.3FINANCE if investors who are members of MUTUALs (=financial institutions such as some insurance companies, without shareholders) participate in their profits, they receive a share of the profits in addition to the normal payments from their investments —participation noun [uncountable]Employee participation in corporate decisions helps reduce absenteeism.Members also benefit from their participation in the profits of the mutual company.the impact of worker participation schemes on enterprise performance→ See Verb tableOrigin participate (1400-1500) Latin past participle of participare, from particeps “taking part”, from pars; → PART1 