This shows grade level based on the word's complexity.
osculate
[ os-kyuh-leyt ]
/ ˈɒs kyəˌleɪt /
Save This Word!
This shows grade level based on the word's complexity.
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.
QUIZ
CAN YOU ANSWER THESE COMMON GRAMMAR DEBATES?
There are grammar debates that never die; and the ones highlighted in the questions in this quiz are sure to rile everyone up once again. Do you know how to answer the questions that cause some of the greatest grammar debates?
Question 1 of 7
Which sentence is correct?
Origin of osculate
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, adjectiveWORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH osculate
oscillate, osculateWords nearby osculate
oscitancy, oscitant, Osco-Umbrian, osculant, oscular, osculate, osculating circle, osculating plane, osculation, osculum, OSD
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
How to use osculate in a sentence
The circle is then said to “osculate” the curve, or to have “contact of the second order” with it at P.
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