insulate
Americanverb (used with object)
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to cover, line, or separate with a material that prevents or reduces the passage, transfer, or leakage of heat, electricity, or sound.
to insulate an electric wire with a rubber sheath; to insulate a coat with down.
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to place in an isolated situation or condition; segregate.
verb
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to prevent or reduce the transmission of electricity, heat, or sound to or from (a body, device, or region) by surrounding with a nonconducting material
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to isolate or detach
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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preinsulateverb (used with object)
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reinsulateverb (used with object)
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noninsulatingadjective
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superinsulatedadjective
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uninsulatedadjective
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well-insulatedadjective
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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insulatesimple
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insulatessimple
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have insulatedperfect
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has insulatedperfect
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am insulatingprogressive
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are insulatingprogressive
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is insulatingprogressive
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have been insulatingperfect progressive
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has been insulatingperfect progressive
Past
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insulatedsimple
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had insulatedperfect
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was insulatingprogressive
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were insulatingprogressive
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had been insulatingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of insulate
First recorded in 1530–40, insulate is from the Latin word insulātus made into an island. See insula, -ate 1
Explanation
The verb insulate means "protect from heat, cold, or noise," like when you add an extra layer of clothing to insulate yourself from the cold. You can insulate a wall to keep sound out, or insulate your house to keep cold air from getting inside. So, to insulate is to protect against unwanted changes. Sometimes this can mean keeping out the influence or beliefs of other people, like a parent who tries to insulate his children from people who have different cultures or beliefs. You can see this meaning in the origin of insulate: the Latin word insula, meaning “to make into an island.”
Vocabulary lists containing insulate
Conservation of Energy and Energy Transfer - Introductory
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This Week in Words: February 12 - 16, 2018
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Conservation of Energy and Energy Transfer - Middle School
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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:
David Lawrence, of the Centre for British Progress think tank, puts it plainly: we don't tell people to insulate their homes in winter and then skip the radiators.
From BBC ● Jul. 29, 2026
Makhijani told an associate he took extra precautions because wanted to insulate himself from litigation and that “they were sharks in the distressed world who took advantage of people,” the affidavit stated.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 6, 2026
Then there’s its unique geography, which has often helped insulate it from security risks and external threats.
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 28, 2026
More forcefully, her story punctures the idea that wealth or social status can insulate us from humiliation and loss of agency.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 21, 2026
I could stay and help protect Oak, help insulate him from Madoc’s influence.
From "The Cruel Prince" by Holly Black
She’s looking into options like a cover that insulates the water, hybrid heaters and new electric heating models.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 18, 2026
The historical record here may show that being a lame duck insulates a Fed chair from political pressures.
From MarketWatch ● Feb. 19, 2026
"Investors and global central banks have... favoured gold as their reserve currency of choice, which they believe insulates them from US policy dependence," says Wall.
From BBC ● Jan. 30, 2026
PEDS1 is needed to produce plasmalogens, a specific type of membrane phospholipid that is especially abundant in myelin, the fatty coating that insulates nerve fibers.
From Science Daily ● Jan. 11, 2026
They bought a parka made of reindeer skin, because reindeer hair is hollow and insulates well; and the hood was lined with wolverine fur, because that sheds the ice that forms when you breathe.
From "The Golden Compass" by Philip Pullman
The most powerful organization in medicine is largely insulated from the need to think about, much less fight for, real-life medical professionals.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 26, 2026
One reader uses an insulated lunch bag with reusable ice packs, along with sodas, so she doesn’t have to pay vending machine prices.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 7, 2026
Now, at 80-years-old in his second term, he remains largely insulated from sustained scrutiny about his health.
From Salon ● Jul. 2, 2026
While he also briefly studied overseas in Switzerland, he was said to be a lot more insulated than his half-brother Kim Jong Nam.
From BBC ● Jun. 27, 2026
Mike Burry was odd in his desire to remain insulated from public opinion, and even direct human contact, and to focus instead on hard data and the incentives that guide future human financial behavior.
From "The Big Short" by Michael Lewis
Having nuclear power could eventually lessen Saudi Arabia's reliance on oil, insulating it from volatilities in the global oil market, said Christopher Russo, an energy expert at the consulting firm Charles River Associates.
From BBC ● Jul. 23, 2026
These entities are typically aimed at insulating the parent company from the risks and liabilities of a speculative investment.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 14, 2026
Cook “are almost comically irreconcilable as a matter of logic,” argues Mark in a piece that explains how the justices simultaneously expanded executive power while insulating the one agency it appears to truly value.
From Slate ● Jul. 2, 2026
Another company, Ajinomoto, uses byproducts from its world-famous umami seasoning to create insulating film for AI chips.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 19, 2026
Inside everything is tinted blue from the tarp that covers the walls, insulating the structure against the cold.
From "Allegiant" by Veronica Roth
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.
