In North American English, locate is used intransitively in the sense of “establish” or “settle.”
- The Regina City Council would consider tax concessions, if your company were to locate within our boundaries.
The passive form be located means to be situated. Although some commentators have objected to this usage, it is standard in both British and American English.
- The chemical plant was located too close to the town’s water supply.
As a transitive verb, locate means to discover the location of something.
- Our librarian quickly located the book Josef wanted; it was in the University of British Columbia library.
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