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
- nonpropagative adjective
- propagation noun
- propagational adjective
- propagative adjective
- propagator noun
- propagatory adjective
- self-propagating adjective
- unpropagative adjective
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
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.
The network's use of "Big Lie," he said, was a "deliberate effort by CNN to propagate to its audience an association between the plaintiff and one of the most repugnant figures in modern history."
From Barron's
It’s a dispiriting irony that just when the world needs more internationalism to address climate change, economic inequality and pandemics, among other devastating realities, it’s also experiencing an upsurge in nationalism propagated by the sovereignistas.
From Salon
To get around this awkwardness, Winthrop et al. propagated the notion—formalized in the colony’s 1629 seal—that the Native Americans needed the new settlers for their own good.
Most notably, Charlie Kirk’s very public assassination earlier this fall has, so far, done little more than propagate the beliefs Kirk was already spouting.
From Salon
The team anticipates this discovery will spark further investigations into how these waves propagate and dissipate energy in the corona.
From Science Daily
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.
