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osculate

[ os-kyuh-leyt ]
/ ˈɒs kyəˌleɪt /
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verb (used without object), os·cu·lat·ed, os·cu·lat·ing.
to come into close contact or union.
Geometry. (of a curve) to touch another curve or another part of the same curve so as to have the same tangent and curvature at the point of contact.
verb (used with object), os·cu·lat·ed, os·cu·lat·ing.
to bring into close contact or union.
Geometry. (of a curve) to touch (another curve or another part of the same curve) in osculation or close contact.
to kiss.
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Origin of osculate

1650–60; <Latin ōsculātus (past participle of ōsculārī to kiss), equivalent to ōscul(um) kiss, literally, little mouth (see osculum) + -ātus-ate1

OTHER WORDS FROM osculate

os·cu·la·to·ry [os-kyuh-luh-tawr-ee, -tohr-ee], /ˈɒs kyə ləˌtɔr i, -ˌtoʊr i/, adjectiveun·os·cu·lat·ed, adjective

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH osculate

oscillate, osculate
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use osculate in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for osculate

osculate
/ (ˈɒskjʊˌleɪt) /

verb
usually jocular to kiss
(intr) (of an organism or group of organisms) to be intermediate between two taxonomic groups
geometry to touch in osculation

Word Origin for osculate

C17: from Latin ōsculārī to kiss; see osculum
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
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