collocate, co-locate

There is a difference between the verbs collocate and co-locate.

Collocate

The word collocate, formed from the Latin com (with) and locare (to place), was first used in the early 1500s. It has the following meanings:

• place together;
• put in place or arrange;
• (of words) be used together routinely.

The verb collocate is pronounced with the accent on the first syllable, which has a short o sound: CAW-luh-cate.

Co-locate

The word co-locate was formed in the 1960s from the prefix co- (together) and the verb locate. It has the following meanings:

• to locate two or more entities in the same space or facility;
• to be located in the same space or facility as something else.

The verb co-locate is sometimes spelled without a hyphen: colocate (especially in the United States).

According to various American and British dictionaries, it can be pronounced with the accent on the first, second or last syllable; and both the first and the second syllables have a long o sound: COH-loh-cate; coh-LOH-cate; coh-loh-CATE.