propagate
to cause (an organism) to multiply by any process of natural reproduction from the parent stock.
to reproduce (itself, its kind, etc.), as an organism does.
to transmit (hereditary features or elements) to, or through, offspring.
to spread (a report, doctrine, practice, etc.) from person to person; disseminate.
to cause to increase in number or amount.
to create (an effect) at a distance, as by electromagnetic waves, compression waves, etc., traveling through space or a physical medium; transmit: to propagate sound.
to spread (a disease) from one individual to another: Dr. John Atlee believed believed that filthy living conditions probably propagated cholera.
Computers. to cause (an update or other alteration) to take effect throughout a network of devices:The active master database replicates updates to the standby master database, which propagates the updates to the subscribers.
to multiply by any process of natural reproduction, as organisms; breed.
to increase in extent, as a structural flaw: The crack will propagate only to this joint.
(of electromagnetic waves, compression waves, etc.) to travel through space or a physical medium.
Computers. to take effect throughout a network of devices.
Origin of propagate
1Other words from propagate
- prop·a·ga·tive, prop·a·ga·to·ry [prop-uh-guh-tawr-ee], /ˈprɒp ə gəˌtɔr i/, adjective
- prop·a·ga·tor, noun
- non·prop·a·ga·tive, adjective
- self-prop·a·gat·ing, adjective
- un·prop·a·ga·tive, adjective
Words Nearby propagate
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
How to use propagate in a sentence
The second type of self-disseminating vaccine, the transmissible one, consists of live modified viruses that propagate a weakened form of a disease.
Can Vaccines for Wildlife Prevent Human Pandemics? | Rodrigo Pérez Ortega | August 24, 2020 | Quanta MagazineEmotionally charged prejudices are propagated from generation to generation by parental and adult authority and by the use of myths and symbols.
The lie started out as a rumor, which was first picked up and propagated by the American PR firm Hill & Knowlton.
The precise history of these self-propagating stories here on Earth is excruciatingly hard to decode because what we see are the successes.
How Life Could Continue to Evolve - Issue 88: Love & Sex | Caleb Scharf | August 12, 2020 | NautilusIf recombination happened earlier than supposed due to the clumping effect of magnetic fields, then sound waves couldn’t have propagated as far beforehand, and the resulting blobs would be smaller.
The Hidden Magnetic Universe Begins to Come Into View | Natalie Wolchover | July 2, 2020 | Quanta Magazine
Anti-abortion organizations tend to tend to propagate the idea that the procedure is dangerous and unproven.
Abortion Complications Are Rare, No Matter What the Right Says | Samantha Allen | December 8, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTOnline, commenters seeking a way in or claiming to have visited the site propagate stories about the Cold War bunker.
Those who propagate it are considered paranoids or activists with an axe to grind.
Did Putin Blow Up the Whole Polish Government in 2010? A Second Look. | Will Cathcart | April 11, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTNeocon supporters of Netanyahu like David Frum propagate this view as well.
He was stern but never oppressive – we knew abuse of power and would not propagate it in our personal lives.
These animals prefer cold countries, but can subsist and propagate in temperate ones.
Buffon's Natural History. Volume VII (of 10) | Georges Louis Leclerc de BuffonIf they could propagate their own they would be more likely to plant them.
June is also the proper time to propagate pinks and carnations by pipings.
The Book of Sports: | William MartinIn the species of the hen and pigeon, a great number of races have been very lately produced, all of which propagate their kinds.
A Treatise on Sheep: | Ambrose BlacklockIt is a mutual action of male and female, with instruments ordained for that purpose to propagate their kind.
The Works of Aristotle the Famous Philosopher | Anonymous
British Dictionary definitions for propagate
/ (ˈprɒpəˌɡeɪt) /
biology to reproduce or cause to reproduce; breed
(tr) horticulture to produce (plants) by layering, grafting, cuttings, etc
(tr) to promulgate; disseminate
physics to move through, cause to move through, or transmit, esp in the form of a wave: to propagate sound
(tr) to transmit (characteristics) from one generation to the next
Origin of propagate
1Derived forms of propagate
- propagation, noun
- propagational, adjective
- propagative, adjective
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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