transmit

American  

[trans-mit, tranz-] / trænsˈmɪt, trænz- /

verb (used with object)

transmitted, transmitting

1. to send or forward, as to a recipient or destination; dispatch; convey.

   Synonyms:

   remit, transfer

2. to communicate, as information or news.

   Synonyms:

   bear

3. to pass or spread (disease, infection, etc.) to another.

4. to pass on (a genetic characteristic) from parent to offspring.

   The mother transmitted her red hair to her daughter.

5. Physics.

   1. to cause (light, heat, sound, etc.) to pass through a medium.

   2. to convey or pass along (an impulse, force, motion, etc.).

   3. to permit (light, heat, etc.) to pass through.

      Glass transmits light.

6. Radio and Television. to emit (electromagnetic waves).

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verb (used without object)

transmitted, transmitting

1. to send a signal by wire, radio, or television waves.

2. to pass on a right or obligation to heirs or descendants.

transmit British  

/ trænzˈmɪt /

verb

1. (tr) to pass or cause to go from one place or person to another; transfer

2. (tr) to pass on or impart (a disease, infection, etc)

3. (tr) to hand down to posterity

4. (tr; usually passive) to pass (an inheritable characteristic) from parent to offspring

5. to allow the passage of (particles, energy, etc)

   radio waves are transmitted through the atmosphere

6. 1. to send out (signals) by means of radio waves or along a transmission line

   2. to broadcast (a radio or television programme)

7. (tr) to transfer (a force, motion, power, etc) from one part of a mechanical system to another

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Related Words

See carry.

Other Word Forms

• nontransmittible adjective
• pretransmit verb (used with object)
• retransmit verb (used with object)
• transmittable adjective
• transmittal noun
• transmittible adjective
• untransmitted adjective

Etymology

Origin of transmit

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English transmitten, from Latin trānsmittere “to send across,” from trāns- trans- + mittere “to send”

Explanation

If you’re an international spy, you might transmit secret messages using a special code written in invisible ink. If you aren’t a spy, you could probably just use email. Whatever your circumstances, when you transmit information, you send. You can transmit things from person to person or from one thing to another. The airwaves can be used to transmit radio or TV signals, for example, and computers can transmit messages over a network. This verb often describes messages or data being sent, but you can also transmit ideas, beliefs, or attitude. In addition, transmit can describe the spread of disease, like mosquitoes that can transmit disease when they bite.

Example Sentences

The dawn of the electrical age was constrained by a logistical bottleneck: Thomas Edison’s direct current systems could only transmit power about a mile before the voltage degraded.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 24, 2026

With no phone reception, he contacted the coastguard using a radio that can transmit, which he keeps in his bag.

From BBC • Apr. 14, 2026

Buying DustPhotonics will expand its portfolio to include SiPho circuits, chips which transmit data using light.

From Barron's • Apr. 14, 2026

The technology is used in optical transceivers, which convert electrical signals into light pulses and vice versa to transmit data between hardware in data centers.

From MarketWatch • Apr. 14, 2026

The fluorescent lights transmit conversations from passing cars on Broadway.

From "Dreaming in Cuban" by Cristina García

Related Words

• address
• broadcast
• carry
• conduct
• convey
• disseminate
• impart
• pass on
• relay
• spread
• transfer
• translate
• transport