transmit
Americanverb (used with object)
-
transmits,
present (3rd person singular)
-
transmitted,
past participle, past
-
transmitting
present participle
-
to send or forward, as to a recipient or destination; dispatch; convey.
-
to communicate, as information or news.
- Synonyms:
- bear
-
to pass or spread (disease, infection, etc.) to another.
-
to pass on (a genetic characteristic) from parent to offspring.
The mother transmitted her red hair to her daughter.
-
Physics.
-
to cause (light, heat, sound, etc.) to pass through a medium.
-
to convey or pass along (an impulse, force, motion, etc.).
-
to permit (light, heat, etc.) to pass through.
Glass transmits light.
-
-
Radio and Television. to emit (electromagnetic waves).
verb (used without object)
-
transmits,
present (3rd person singular)
-
transmitted,
past participle, past
-
transmitting
present participle
-
to send a signal by wire, radio, or television waves.
-
to pass on a right or obligation to heirs or descendants.
verb
-
(tr) to pass or cause to go from one place or person to another; transfer
-
(tr) to pass on or impart (a disease, infection, etc)
-
(tr) to hand down to posterity
-
(tr; usually passive) to pass (an inheritable characteristic) from parent to offspring
-
to allow the passage of (particles, energy, etc)
radio waves are transmitted through the atmosphere
-
-
to send out (signals) by means of radio waves or along a transmission line
-
to broadcast (a radio or television programme)
-
-
(tr) to transfer (a force, motion, power, etc) from one part of a mechanical system to another
Synonym Usage
See carry.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
-
transmittalnoun
-
pretransmitverb (used with object)
-
retransmitverb (used with object)
-
nontransmittibleadjective
-
transmittableadjective
-
transmittibleadjective
-
untransmittedadjective
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
transmitsimple
-
transmitssimple
-
have transmittedperfect
-
has transmittedperfect
-
am transmittingprogressive
-
are transmittingprogressive
-
is transmittingprogressive
-
have been transmittingperfect progressive
-
has been transmittingperfect progressive
Past
-
transmittedsimple
-
had transmittedperfect
-
was transmittingprogressive
-
were transmittingprogressive
-
had been transmittingperfect progressive
Future
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.
Vocabulary lists containing transmit
Tier 2 Words for the SBAC ELA Items
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
Send a Message: Mit and Miss
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
Unit 1: Telling Details
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
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.
See Examples For:
“The badly written letter of Andrés López Beltrán doesn’t transmit indignation,” wrote Denise Dresser, a columnist and frequentSheinbaum administration critic.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 14, 2026
Optical interconnects transmit data using light and can provide the high bandwidth and energy efficiency increasingly required as AI networks scale, she says.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 12, 2026
The bacteria itself blocks transmission of diseases such as dengue, Zika and chikungunya, so "you will still have mosquitoes biting people, but they will not transmit disease."
From Barron's ● Aug. 7, 2026
Aedes albopictus, a mosquito native to Asia that can transmit the same diseases as Aedes aegypti, conquered the country even faster thanks to developments in human infrastructure.
From Slate ● Aug. 4, 2026
My eyes bugged, the better to transmit my raging mind stream.
From "Sir Fig Newton and the Science of Persistence" by Sonja Thomas
The system places a nonlinear waveguide between two optical filters, each of which transmits a different portion of the light spectrum.
From Science Daily ● Jun. 4, 2026
The flea-sized psyllid bites the leaves and transmits the disease, which slowly chokes out the tree’s vascular system from the inside, taking years to finally show itself.
From Slate ● Apr. 20, 2026
These also aren’t the only messages Mr. Trump transmits.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 26, 2026
Every vessel transmits a message per second over a universal radio frequency that announces its identity, destination and position.
From Barron's ● Mar. 8, 2026
He tells me to be careful, and that he will be monitoring anything that transmits through my microphone.
From "Legend" by Marie Lu
Researchers are increasingly examining how diseases transmitted by vectors may have restricted where canine populations could survive and expand.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 10, 2026
"A thorough investigation found no evidence of MoD data or systems being accessed, compromised or transmitted externally," an MoD spokesperson said.
From BBC ● Aug. 10, 2026
Dengue is a viral fever caused by the dengue virus, which is transmitted to humans through the bite of infected Aedes mosquitoes.
From BBC ● Jul. 23, 2026
People become infected with the illness by consuming food or water that has been contaminated — the infection is not transmitted from person to person.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 23, 2026
It probably arose from a virus of monkeys and was transmitted to humans by mosquitoes.
From "Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies" by Jared M. Diamond
When a Chinese official who had first denied human-to-human transmission now admitted people without symptoms were transmitting the virus, “GAME ON,” Dr. Fauci wrote.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 7, 2026
And because Aedes aegypti feeds almost exclusively on humans, the insects are great at transmitting disease from one person to the next.
From Slate ● Aug. 4, 2026
"We can confirm that the Houthis were recorded transmitting a warning message to ships in the region," the ICS said.
From Barron's ● Jul. 22, 2026
He was also accused of transmitting some of the classified materials from his time as national security adviser to two relatives.
From BBC ● Jun. 26, 2026
As of this morning, the messages are transmitting directly.
From "The Mysterious Benedict Society" by Trenton Lee Stewart
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.
