To remove or erase. For example, deleting a
character means removing it from a
file or erasing it from the
display screen. Deleting a file means erasing it from a
disk. Note that, unlike
cutting, deleting does not necessarily place the removed
object in a
buffer from where it can be recovered.
Also see Are Deleted Files Completely Erased? in the Did You Know . . . ? section of Webopedia.