reticulate
Americanadjective
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netted; covered with a network.
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Botany. having the veins or nerves disposed like the threads of a net.
verb (used with object)
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to form into a network.
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to cover or mark with a network.
verb (used without object)
adjective
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in the form of a network or having a network of parts
a reticulate leaf
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resembling, covered with, or having the form of a net
verb
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of reticulate
1650–60; < Latin rēticulātus net-like, equivalent to rēticul ( um ) reticle + -ātus -ate 1
Explanation
To reticulate is to form a type of net or network. Reticulating is an activity that creates a net or network. Linking a group of computers into a shared network reticulates them. A spider spinning a web is doing a form of reticulating. A businessperson making connections with many colleagues is reticulating by creating a social network with them. The key to any form of reticulating is that it makes connections: it links people or things in a type of net.
Vocabulary lists containing reticulate
"The Deep," Vocabulary from the short story
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Vocabulary from Readings 1, Unit 4
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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.
"For decades, the question of how reticulate veins form has remained open, and finally we have a plausible answer" in Chinese money plants' Voronoi patterns.
From Science Daily • May 14, 2026
Monocots have leaves with reticulate, net-like venation and dicot leaves have parallel venation.
From Textbooks • Jun. 9, 2022
A leaf has reticulate venation whereas leaflets show parallel venation.
From Textbooks • Jun. 9, 2022
In dicots, however, the veins of the leaf have a net-like appearance, forming a pattern known as reticulate venation.
From Textbooks • Jun. 9, 2022
The colour varies from grey to black, with numerous round pale spots, which may be tinged with reddish; the dorsal and caudal fins reticulate with darker.
From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 5, Slice 7 "Cerargyrite" to "Charing Cross" by Various
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.
