impregnate

[verb im-preg-neyt, im-preg-neyt; adjective im-preg-nit, -neyt]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR impregnate ON THESAURUS.COM

verb (used with object), im·preg·nat·ed, im·preg·nat·ing.

to make pregnant; get with child or young.

to fertilize.

to cause to be infused or permeated throughout, as with a substance; saturate: to impregnate a handkerchief with cheap perfume.

to fill interstices with a substance.

to furnish with some actuating or modifying element infused or introduced; imbue, infect; tincture.

adjective

impregnated.

Origin of impregnate

1535–45; < Late Latin impraegnātus past participle of impraegnāre to fertilize, impregnate, equivalent to im- im-¹ + praegn- (see pregnant¹) + -ātus -ate¹

Related formsim·preg·na·tion, nounim·preg·na·tor, nounim·preg·na·to·ry

[im-preg-nuh-tawr-ee, -tohr-ee] /ɪmˈprɛg nəˌtɔr i, -ˌtoʊr i/, adjectivenon·im·preg·nat·ed, adjectivere·im·preg·nate, verb (used with object), re·im·preg·nat·ed, re·im·preg·nat·ing.re·im·preg·na·tion, nounself-im·preg·nat·ed, adjectiveself-im·preg·nat·ing, adjectiveself-im·preg·na·tion, nounself-im·preg·na·tor, nounun·im·preg·nat·ed, adjective

Synonyms for impregnate

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR impregnate ON THESAURUS.COM

3. permeate, infuse, penetrate.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for impregnation

intake, digestion, consumption, saturation, penetration, retention, propagation, breeding, procreation, implantation, pollination, overload, congestion, concentration, origin, fertilization, fusion, ingestion, osmosis, reception

Examples from the Web for impregnation

Historical Examples of impregnation

She, indeed, created him, his sole function being her impregnation.
The Truth About Woman
C. Gasquoine Hartley
I return to his discoveries on the impregnation of the Queen Bee.
Langstroth on the Hive and the Honey-Bee
L. L. Langstroth
Then we still have some time before the impregnation ceremony?
Mother America
Sam McClatchie
The process of fertilization or fecundation is also known as impregnation and conception.
Woman
William J. Robinson
Impregnation with this precaution might occur, but it would be rare.
Self Knowledge and Guide to Sex Instruction
T. W. Shannon

British Dictionary definitions for impregnation

impregnate

verb (ˈɪmprɛɡˌneɪt) (tr)

to saturate, soak, or infuseto impregnate a cloth with detergent

to imbue or permeate; pervade

to cause to conceive; make pregnant

to fertilize (an ovum)

to make (land, soil, etc) fruitful

adjective (ɪmˈprɛɡnɪt, -ˌneɪt)

pregnant or fertilized

Derived Formsimpregnation, nounimpregnator, noun

Word Origin for impregnate

C17: from Late Latin impraegnāre to make pregnant, from Latin im- in- ² + praegnans pregnant

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for impregnation

late 14c., "making or becoming pregnant," from Old French impregnacion, from Late Latin impregnationem (nominative impregnatio), from impraegnare (see impregnate).

impregnate

c.1600, from Late Latin impraegnatus "pregnant," past participle of impraegnare "to render pregnant," from assimilated form of in- "into, in" (see in- (2)) + praegnare "make pregnant" (see pregnant). Earlier in same sense was impregn (1530s).

impregnation in Medicine

impregnate

[ĭm-prĕg′nāt]

v.

To make pregnant; to cause to conceive; inseminate.

To fertilize an ovum.

To fill throughout; saturate.

Related formsim′preg•na′tion n.im•preg′na′tor n.