transpire
Americanverb (used without object)
-
transpires,
present (3rd person singular)
-
transpired,
past participle, past
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transpiring
present participle
-
to occur; happen; take place.
-
to emit or give off waste matter, watery vapor, etc., through the surface, as of the body or of leaves.
-
to escape, as moisture or odor, through or as if through pores.
-
to be revealed or become known.
verb (used with object)
-
transpires,
present (3rd person singular)
-
transpired,
past participle, past
-
transpiring
present participle
verb
-
(intr) to come to light; be known
-
informal (intr) to happen or occur
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physiol to give off or exhale (water or vapour) through the skin, a mucous membrane, etc
-
(of plants) to lose (water in the form of water vapour), esp through the stomata of the leaves
Usage
It is often maintained that transpire should not be used to mean happen or occur, as in the event transpired late in the evening , and that the word is properly used to mean become known, as in it transpired later that the thief had been caught . The word is, however, widely used in the former sense, esp in spoken English
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
transpiresimple
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transpiressimple
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have transpiredperfect
-
has transpiredperfect
-
am transpiringprogressive
-
are transpiringprogressive
-
is transpiringprogressive
-
have been transpiringperfect progressive
-
has been transpiringperfect progressive
Past
-
transpiredsimple
-
had transpiredperfect
-
was transpiringprogressive
-
were transpiringprogressive
-
had been transpiringperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of transpire
First recorded in 1590–1600; from Middle French transpirer, from Medieval Latin trānspīrāre, equivalent to Latin trāns- trans- + spīrāre “to breathe”
Explanation
Transpire is a fancy way of saying "happen." You might go to a fortune teller to find out what will transpire in the future. Originally used to express when information became known or came to light, many purists will tell you that's really the best way to use transpire. It can also mean releasing vapor into the air, like when a plant transpires water through its leaves on a hot day. Note: you'll usually encounter this word in its past tense: for example, "We had to watch the replay to figure out what had transpired."
Vocabulary lists containing transpire
The Great Gatsby
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"To His Coy Mistress" by Andrew Marvell
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I Am Malala
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Warsh has vowed to cut down on providing insights into Fed policy positions, and on Friday again refrained from sharing his view of what may transpire at the October gathering.
From Barron's ● Oct. 16, 2026
The epistemic mismatch between her idea of what would transpire and the frat brothers’ is truly tragic.
From Slate ● Oct. 9, 2026
While major chip makers have some helium supply in reserve, there’s some uncertainty about what would transpire if the conflict were to drag on and disrupt helium production over a longer span.
From MarketWatch ● Mar. 13, 2026
That does not look like it will transpire, as personal terms between City and the player are not expected to be an issue.
From BBC ● Jan. 16, 2026
The power of Mr. Terupt, even in his coma, made something huge transpire.
From "Because of Mr. Terupt" by Rob Buyea
In an era when short TikTok and YouTube videos are being blamed for eroding attention spans and fueling a reading crisis, social media, it transpires, is creating new audiences for the classics.
From Barron's ● Sep. 4, 2026
It transpires it is not well liked in the US.
From BBC ● Jun. 25, 2026
Freedom of the seas, it transpires, is challenging to enforce.
From MarketWatch ● Apr. 21, 2026
For one, the romance that transpires is between a living male and, let’s say, a ghostly woman.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 9, 2025
Nor can all that transpires in the wider culture—from Stonewall to Will & Grace to Brokeback Mountain to Glee to a U.S. president declaring his support for legalized gay marriage—change every mind in Levittown.
From "Drama High" by Michael Sokolove
"I want to say broadly over the month or so that's transpired since then, the world has broadly conformed to our expectations."
From Barron's ● Oct. 16, 2026
That earlier forecast assumed an earlier end to the U.S.-Iran conflict, and therefore lower energy prices than have transpired.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 23, 2026
In May, which transpired to be Guardiola's final month at City, the Spaniard was asked what advice he would give the next manager.
From BBC ● Sep. 15, 2026
As if this knee-jerk response were anticipated, Sally reassures the audience that what they came to see will be different than what transpired before.
From Salon ● Sep. 14, 2026
She wanted to know every single thing that transpired with her darling girl.
From "Charles and Emma: The Darwins' Leap of Faith" by Deborah Heiligman
This Musk v Altman trial is transpiring as the public has only just started to grapple with AI's complicated entry into our lives.
From BBC ● Apr. 28, 2026
Imagine the trash talk that might be transpiring with Lappe on second base talking to Brooks, one of his best friends who plays shortstop.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 15, 2026
Paul Vieira covers Canada for The Wall Street Journal, and is based in Ottawa.He writes about what’s transpiring in the U.S.’s northern neighbor with an eye toward the broader global context.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 18, 2025
“I think it was hard enough for the SEC and others to understand what was transpiring in the market then.”
From Barron's ● Oct. 23, 2025
I had been isolated from developments in other parts of the country and was eager to see for myself what was transpiring in the hinterlands.
From "Long Walk to Freedom" by Nelson Mandela
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
