percolate
Americanverb (used with object)
-
percolates,
present (3rd person singular)
-
percolated,
past participle, past
-
percolating
present participle
-
to cause (a liquid) to pass through a porous body; filter.
-
(of a liquid) to filter through; permeate.
-
to brew (coffee) in a percolator.
verb (used without object)
-
percolates,
present (3rd person singular)
-
percolated,
past participle, past
-
percolating
present participle
-
to pass through a porous substance; filter; ooze; seep; trickle.
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to become percolated.
The coffee is starting to percolate.
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to become active, lively, or spirited.
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to show activity, movement, or life; grow or spread gradually; germinate.
Interest in the idea has begun to percolate.
noun
verb
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to cause (a liquid) to pass through a fine mesh, porous substance, etc, or (of a liquid) to pass through a fine mesh, porous substance, etc; trickle
rain percolated through the roof
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to permeate; penetrate gradually
water percolated the road
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informal (intr) to become active or lively
she percolated with happiness
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to make (coffee) or (of coffee) to be made in a percolator
noun
Pronunciation
The pronunciation of percolate as , with an intrusive y -glide, results from analogy with words like circulate and matriculate, where the unstressed vowel following the k -sound is symbolized by a u spelling, making the y -glide mandatory. In similar words where is followed by some other vowel, the represents a hypercorrection. The pronunciation of escalate as is another such example. See coupon, new.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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percolatesimple
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percolatessimple
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have percolatedperfect
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has percolatedperfect
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am percolatingprogressive
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are percolatingprogressive
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is percolatingprogressive
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have been percolatingperfect progressive
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has been percolatingperfect progressive
Past
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percolatedsimple
-
had percolatedperfect
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was percolatingprogressive
-
were percolatingprogressive
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had been percolatingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of percolate
1620–30; < Latin percōlātus, past participle of percōlāre to filter. See per-, colander, -ate 1
Explanation
When something percolates, it spreads gradually. If the news of your victory in the spelling bee spread slowly through your entire school, you could sit back and enjoy watching it percolate. When a liquid percolates, it's filtered through something, and when an idea percolates, it's filtered through a group of people. Percolate often refers specifically to coffee, which is brewed by mixing ground coffee beans with hot water and filtering them through paper — in other words, coffee percolates. The Latin root is percolatus, which comes from per, or "through," plus colare, "to strain."
Vocabulary lists containing percolate
This Week in Pop Culture: December 29, 2018 - January 4, 2019
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2015 Spelling Bee - Words from Round 2
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This Week In Culture: August 1–6, 2020
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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:
That focus will likely prove key if the current rotation deepens over the summer months as bond yields rise and inflation pressure percolate.
From Barron's ● Jun. 29, 2026
But early in the year, core inflation excluding food and energy prices started to percolate, and the war with Iran has seemed to bring inflation to a boil.
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 24, 2026
“We expect the impact of higher energy prices to gradually percolate in the coming months as replacement supplies arrive with a lag.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 10, 2026
The thing is, how do these things percolate three, four generations later?
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 18, 2026
Reporters from far-flung cities wired the same observation back to their editors, and stories of delight and awe began to percolate through the most remote towns.
From "The Devil in the White City" by Erik Larson
They can build retention ponds or swales to filter out contaminants before water percolates underground.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 29, 2026
That lack of fear percolates through Ambiguous Desire, where every pang of doubt is offset by a moment of euphoria or beauty.
From BBC ● Apr. 2, 2026
"It's very much a wait to see how the removal of the tariffs percolates through the supply chain," he added.
From Barron's ● Feb. 20, 2026
“Liberation” percolates with lively humor, as when Lizzie introduces herself as a journalist who writes “obituaries and weddings—which in a way are the same thing.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 21, 2025
My heart percolates and my hands begin to sweat.
From "The Bletchley Riddle" by Ruta Sepetys and Steve Sheinkin
The fight percolated predictably from there, rising in intensity, until Jessica Tarlov—the liberal punching bag on Fox’s The Five—broke things up.
From Slate ● Nov. 19, 2025
News of the possible sale had percolated since last year, as Starbucks’ business in China faltered.
From MarketWatch ● Nov. 3, 2025
In the decades since her pregnancy, the field of bipolar research and recommendations for treatment of pregnant and breastfeeding women have evolved, but experts say the information has not percolated through to all clinicians.
From Salon ● Sep. 10, 2024
The question percolated through today’s testimony by Michael Cohen, Trump’s longtime lawyer and fixer, whose second day on the stand also featured a furious pushback from defense lawyers.
From New York Times ● May 14, 2024
We tried to keep our voices down, but excitement percolated through the packed crowd.
From "Between Shades of Gray" by Ruta Sepetys
"We're not the only jurisdiction that's facing that ageing-related crisis, because similar issues are percolating in Australia and England," she said.
From BBC ● Aug. 19, 2026
“Tapeheads” captures a specific moment in Los Angeles history, sure to be nostalgic for some, from a desolate downtown to a percolating music scene.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 6, 2026
Even in the film’s most convoluted moments, there’s a fire of dissent percolating just beneath its surface.
From Salon ● May 22, 2026
To be sure, fears that AI might cause a white-collar-job apocalypse have been percolating for years.
From MarketWatch ● Feb. 14, 2026
Inside its percolating depths, the manure fermented, generating scalding heat.
From "Seabiscuit: An American Legend" by Laura Hillenbrand
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.
