"act of dilating," 1590s, formed from dilate on the mistaken assumption that the -ate in that word was the Latin verbal suffix (it is instead part of the stem); the proper form, dilatation, is older (c. 1400).
the dilation of the pupil of the eye
dilapidated
dilapidation
dilatation
dilate
dilated
dilation
dilatory
dildo
dilemma
dilettante
dilettantism