propagate
Americanverb (used with object)
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to cause (an organism) to multiply by any process of natural reproduction from the parent stock.
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to reproduce (itself, its kind, etc.), as an organism does.
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to transmit (hereditary features or elements) to, or through, offspring.
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to spread (a report, doctrine, practice, etc.) from person to person; disseminate.
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to cause to increase in number or amount.
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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.
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to spread (a disease) from one individual to another.
Dr. John Atlee believed believed that filthy living conditions probably propagated cholera.
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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.
verb (used without object)
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to multiply by any process of natural reproduction, as organisms; breed.
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to increase in extent, as a structural flaw.
The crack will propagate only to this joint.
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(of electromagnetic waves, compression waves, etc.) to travel through space or a physical medium.
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Computers. to take effect throughout a network of devices.
verb
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biology to reproduce or cause to reproduce; breed
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(tr) horticulture to produce (plants) by layering, grafting, cuttings, etc
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(tr) to promulgate; disseminate
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physics to move through, cause to move through, or transmit, esp in the form of a wave
to propagate sound
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(tr) to transmit (characteristics) from one generation to the next
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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unpropagativeadjective
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propagationnoun
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propagativeadjective
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self-propagatingadjective
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propagatoryadjective
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nonpropagativeadjective
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propagationaladjective
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propagatornoun
Conjugated Forms
Present
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have propagatedperfect
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has propagatedperfect 3rd person singular
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is propagatingprogressive 3rd person singular
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propagatingparticiple
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has been propagatingperfect progressive 3rd person singular
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am propagatingprogressive 1st person singular
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are propagatingprogressive
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propagatessingular 3rd person
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have been propagatingperfect progressive
Past
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had propagatedperfect
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had been propagatingperfect progressive
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was propagatingprogressive singular
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were propagatingprogressive plural
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propagatedsimple
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propagatedparticiple
Future
Etymology
Origin of propagate
First recorded in 1560–70; from Latin propāgātus (past participle of propāgāre “to reproduce (a plant) by cuttings, spread for sprouting, propagate, enlarge),” equivalent to propāg(ēs) “something set out, scion, slip” ( pro- pro- 1 + pāg-, base of pangere “to fasten” + -ēs noun suffix) + -ātus -ate 1
Explanation
To propagate is to be fruitful and multiply, by the usual routes of reproduction, or by spreading something around — like a rumor. Propagate comes from the Latin word propagare, which means "to reproduce plants, breed." Plants love to propagate, especially when someone with a green thumb starts off with a jade plant stem in water and ends up with a garden full of the succulents. Plants aren't the only things to propagate like bunnies: in some apocalyptic movies, a virus propagates quickly, killing almost everyone in the world. Sound and light can also spread, or propagate, through the air.
Vocabulary lists containing propagate
Romeo and Juliet
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Power Prefix: pro
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The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time
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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.
But energy costs don’t stay contained; they propagate because they are a key input for many goods and services.
From MarketWatch • May 13, 2026
The consequences propagate outward—first into food systems, then into fragile states, then into migration pressures at the borders of more-resilient economies.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 14, 2026
"One such device is a 'microwave circulator' that only allows microwave radio signals to propagate in one direction," Hoffmann explained.
From Science Daily • Mar. 8, 2026
A former member of the jihadist group told reporters in 2019 that they were originally funded by a military intelligence unit to propagate a fundamentalist ideology in Sri Lanka's multi-ethnic eastern province.
From Barron's • Feb. 25, 2026
Were that to happen, the seedlings might all be killed by a single drought or frost, leaving no seeds to propagate the species.
From "Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies" by Jared M. Diamond
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.
