proliferate
Americanverb (used with or without object)
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to grow or produce by multiplication of parts, as in budding or cell division, or by procreation.
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to increase in number or spread rapidly and often excessively.
verb
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to grow or reproduce (new parts, cells, etc) rapidly
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to grow or increase or cause to grow or increase rapidly
Other Word Forms
- proliferative adjective
Etymology
Origin of proliferate
First recorded in 1870–75; prolifer(ous) + -ate 1
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.
In the last few days, videos made using the latest version of the app Seedance have proliferated online.
From BBC
While that litigation rages, Core is also competing with a new generation of private members clubs that have proliferated since the Covid pandemic.
The phenomenon that first emerged in the 2010s, as North Korea and Iran sought to evade international sanctions, has proliferated, leaving western governments scrambling to keep up.
From BBC
Space Force also is launching “proliferated” constellations, or networks, of satellites that are harder for adversaries to disrupt than a single satellite.
While these tech companies were booming as the use of smartphones and apps proliferated, she felt there was an elephant in the room.
From BBC
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.
