inject
verb (used with object)
to force (a fluid) into a passage, cavity, or tissue.
inject
1 American
[in-jekt]
/ ɪnˈdʒɛkt /
verb (used with object)
-
injects,
present (3rd person singular)
-
injected,
past participle, past
-
injecting
present participle
-
to force (a fluid) into a passage, cavity, or tissue.
to inject a medicine into the veins.
-
to introduce (something new or different).
to inject humor into a situation.
-
to introduce arbitrarily or inappropriately; intrude.
-
to interject (a remark, suggestion, etc.), as into conversation.
inject.
2
American
abbreviation
inject
British
/ ɪnˈdʒɛkt /
verb
-
med to introduce (a fluid) into (the body of a person or animal) by means of a syringe or similar instrument
-
(foll by into) to introduce (a new aspect or element)
to inject humour into a scene
-
to interject (a comment, idea, etc)
-
to place (a rocket, satellite, etc) in orbit
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
injectsimple
-
injectssimple
-
have injectedperfect
-
has injectedperfect
-
am injectingprogressive
-
are injectingprogressive
-
is injectingprogressive
-
have been injectingperfect progressive
-
has been injectingperfect progressive
Past
-
injectedsimple
-
had injectedperfect
-
was injectingprogressive
-
were injectingprogressive
-
had been injectingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of inject1
First recorded in 1590–1600; from Latin injectus, past participle of in(j)icere “to throw in,” equivalent to in- “in” + -jec- (combining form of jac- “to throw”) + -tus past participle suffix; see in- 2
Origin of inject.2
From the Latin word injectiō
Explanation
To inject is to give an injection, or a shot. When your doctor tells you that you need a flu shot, she wants to inject you with a vaccine that will help keep you from getting sick. You are most likely to hear the verb inject at the doctor's office. Veterinarians inject dogs each year with rabies vaccines, and sometimes if you're sick enough, a doctor or nurse might need to inject you with antibiotics. You can use inject in a figurative way, too: "I'd like to inject a new topic into this conversation, it's getting so boring." The Latin root is inicere, "to throw in" or "to throw on."
Vocabulary lists containing inject
Vocabulary from the Poem “Touchscreen” by Marshall Davis Jones
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Latin Love, Vol II: iacere
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The Night Diary
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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:
In 2020 the Fed, BOE and others just bought lots of government debt to inject liquidity into markets.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 16, 2026
His purpose was to simply "inject as much joy and silliness into the world as he could and he was doing it right until the end," he added.
From BBC ● Aug. 4, 2026
The performance, perhaps intending to inject a note of potential menace, plays up Ru’s anger at the expense of his hurt — and comes off as grating and utterly unsympathetic.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 21, 2026
First, jets launched by the active black hole inject energy into the surrounding galactic gas.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 18, 2026
They are going to inject me with outer space truth serum.
From "Please Ignore Vera Dietz" by A.S. King
It also injects a bit of saliva, which contains anticoagulants to prevent the host’s blood from clotting as the mosquito feeds.
From Slate ● Aug. 4, 2026
During the procedure, an interventional radiologist uses a thin catheter to reach the affected blood vessels and injects tiny particles that block blood flow to them.
From Science Daily ● Jun. 17, 2026
That decision, "injects immediate confusion and upheaval into highly time-sensitive medical decisions," the drugmaker wrote in its filing with the Supreme Court.
From Barron's ● May 2, 2026
Jaime Garcia injects five different peptides into her body that she gets from a doctor and a telemedicine company.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 20, 2026
Air pressure is supplied by an electric motor that sucks air from the outside and passes it through virus filters and then injects it into the suit.
From "The Hot Zone" by Richard Preston
He called on him to quit and injected further tales of alleged cruelty into the discussion.
From Slate ● Aug. 8, 2026
A few months ago, Pinchas Cohen learned of a thriving online trade in MOTS-c — a peptide that, when injected into mice, seems to mimic the effects of exercise.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 6, 2026
Vaccines often need strict temperature control during storage and transportation, from the moment of manufacture up until being injected into a patient's arm.
From BBC ● Aug. 5, 2026
The government injected billions into banks, insurance giant AIG and the automobile industry to prevent the collapse of individual companies that would have jeopardized the economy and the financial system writ large if they failed.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 5, 2026
They brought us chicken, but it tasted strange, probably from the hormones injected to make the birds fatter.
From "How Dare the Sun Rise" by Sandra Uwiringiyimana
The process of hydraulic fracturing ekes out oil from older wells, and involves cracking the bedrock several thousand feet below the seafloor by injecting chemical fluids with intense pressure.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 14, 2026
Under the Oaktree deal, his family holding firm is injecting $150 million and won’t receive the common-stock dividends that have paid out billions over the years to its majority owner.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 11, 2026
It was the Greens, Sturgeon said, who'd come closest to "injecting a sense of hope for the future" into the campaign.
From BBC ● Aug. 6, 2026
WHO member states kicked off one more attempt at finalising the missing piece of the pandemic treaty on Monday, with the Ebola outbreak injecting a fresh sense of urgency.
From Barron's ● Jul. 6, 2026
It wasn’t until 1828 that an enterprising Scot named James Neilson had the simple but effective idea of injecting heated air rather than cold air into an iron furnace by means of a bellows.
From "A Walk in the Woods" by Bill Bryson
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
