perforate
Americanverb (used with object)
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to make a hole or holes through by boring, punching, piercing, or the like.
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to pierce through or to the interior of; penetrate.
verb (used without object)
adjective
verb
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to make a hole or holes in (something); penetrate
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(tr) to punch rows of holes between (stamps, coupons, etc) for ease of separation
adjective
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biology
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pierced by small holes
perforate shells
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marked with small transparent spots
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philately another word for perforated
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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perforatornoun
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multiperforateadjective
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nonperforatingadjective
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perforableadjective
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perforativeadjective
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unperforableadjective
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unperforatingadjective
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unperforativeadjective
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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perforatesimple
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perforatessimple
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have perforatedperfect
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has perforatedperfect
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am perforatingprogressive
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are perforatingprogressive
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is perforatingprogressive
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have been perforatingperfect progressive
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has been perforatingperfect progressive
Past
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perforatedsimple
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had perforatedperfect
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was perforatingprogressive
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were perforatingprogressive
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had been perforatingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of perforate
1530–40; < Latin perforātus, past participle of perforāre to bore 2 through; see per-
Explanation
When you perforate something, you make a hole in it, like when you poke holes in a piece of aluminum foil to let steam escape while something is cooking. The word perforate has origins in the Latin word perforatus, the past participle of perforare, meaning “to bore through.” When you perforate something that’s essentially what you do: you bore through it, or punch a hole or holes in it like paper you perforate to fit the rings on your binder, or a leather belt that has been perforated with holes so that you can buckle it.
Vocabulary lists containing perforate
Born a Crime
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Chuck Berry (1926-2017) Tribute List
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The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind
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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.
Perforate, pėr′fō-rāt, v.t. to bore through: to pierce: to make a hole through.—adj.
From Chambers's Twentieth Century Dictionary (part 3 of 4: N-R) by Various
Perforate, pierced with holes, or with transparent dots resembling holes, as an Orange-leaf.
From The Elements of Botany For Beginners and For Schools by Gray, Asa
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.
