transplant
Americanverb (used with object)
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transplants,
present (3rd person singular)
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transplanted,
past participle, past
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transplanting
present participle
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to remove (a plant) from one place and plant it in another.
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Surgery. to transfer (an organ, tissue, etc.) from one part of the body to another or from one person or animal to another.
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to move from one place to another.
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to bring (a family, colony, etc.) from one country, region, etc., to another for settlement; relocate.
verb (used without object)
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transplants,
present (3rd person singular)
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transplanted,
past participle, past
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transplanting
present participle
noun
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transplants
plural
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the act or process of transplanting.
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a plant, organ, person, etc., that has been transplanted.
verb
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(tr) to remove or transfer (esp a plant) from one place to another
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(intr) to be capable of being transplanted
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surgery to transfer (an organ or tissue) from one part of the body to another or from one person or animal to another during a grafting or transplant operation
noun
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A plant that has been uprooted and replanted.
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A surgical procedure in a human or animal in which a body tissue or organ is transferred from a donor to a recipient or from one part of the body to another. Heart, lung, liver, kidney, corneal, and bone-marrow transplants are performed to treat life-threatening illness. Donated tissue must be histocompatible with that of the recipient to prevent immunological rejection.
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See also graft
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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retransplantationnoun
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transplantationnoun
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transplanternoun
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retransplantverb (used with object)
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transplantableadjective
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untransplantedadjective
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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transplantsimple
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transplantssimple
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have transplantedperfect
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has transplantedperfect
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am transplantingprogressive
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are transplantingprogressive
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is transplantingprogressive
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have been transplantingperfect progressive
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has been transplantingperfect progressive
Past
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transplantedsimple
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had transplantedperfect
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was transplantingprogressive
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were transplantingprogressive
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had been transplantingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of transplant
1400–50; late Middle English < Late Latin trānsplantāre, equivalent to Latin trāns- trans- + plantāre to plant
Explanation
Use the verb transplant to describe what you do when you move a cactus into a bigger container, or what a doctor does when she places a donor organ — like a kidney or lung — into the body of a patient. When you transplant your favorite rose bush, you carefully dig it up and re-plant it in another spot in the yard, maybe one that gets more sunlight. You can also use the word as a noun to describe the act of doing such a thing: "The liver transplant was a success." The word's origin is simple: the Latin trans, or "across," plus plantare, which means "to plant."
Vocabulary lists containing transplant
“For the Herd’s Sake, Vaccinate" by Steven L. Weinreb
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The Chocolate War
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This Week in Words: Current Events Vocab for January 29–February 4, 2022
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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.
See Examples For:
Herman, a German transplant who has been in L.A. since 1977, is an artist whose vividly rendered paintings cemented him as one of the West Coast leaders of the ’80s neo-Expressionist movement.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 6, 2026
I had had a kidney transplant from Phillip Palmer, who’s the morning anchor at ABC7, and it was a really big story back in 2007.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 1, 2026
The appearance of Ben Hardwick, a child desperately in need of a liver transplant, launched a drive to raise the awareness of the need for organ donors.
From BBC ● Sep. 30, 2026
In separate tests, researchers found that EMR might be able to reverse some chemical-caused cloudiness to the cornea -- a condition that is currently only treatable through a complete corneal transplant.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 29, 2026
Hepatitis A is rarely fatal, but Farmer’s case was so severe that Jim and other doctors worried he might need a liver transplant.
From "Mountains Beyond Mountains" by Tracy Kidder and Michael French
In-N-Out is a well-regarded brand, and its classic Americana menu is popular among transplants to Southern states, he said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 29, 2026
As the recipient of a donor heart, Jackson has to manage his exercise workload more carefully than his team-mates, many of whom have had kidney transplants, the most common transplant in the UK.
From BBC ● Sep. 23, 2026
Stem cell transplants may be able to repair damage caused by stroke, according to researchers at the University of Zurich.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 22, 2026
College-educated transplants would flood to the orbits of Austin, Houston, and Dallas.
From Slate ● Sep. 21, 2026
It’s illegal to sell human organs and tissues for transplants or medical treatments, but it’s perfectly legal to give them away while charging fees for collecting and processing them.
From "The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks" by Rebecca Skloot
If the graft has enough room and a sufficient blood supply, the transplanted hepatocytes can perform functions similar to those of cells inside the liver itself.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 7, 2026
The feat followed trial and error that initially saw him mollycoddle corals in stress-free environments, but those easily perished in the ocean once transplanted.
From Barron's ● Jul. 29, 2026
The situation led to his decision to stop taking medication that was needed to ensure the continued functioning of a transplanted kidney his brother had donated to him.
From BBC ● Jun. 30, 2026
The researchers transplanted APCs from both young and older mice into a separate group of young mice.
From Science Daily ● Jun. 27, 2026
It looks like a piece of Yorkshire or Cumbria transplanted to the American continent.
From "A Walk in the Woods" by Bill Bryson
In practice, he argues, many innovations grow out of existing ones, often by borrowing or transplanting concepts from one field to another.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 30, 2026
She was a master gardener, expert at transplanting Japanese maples, according to her neighbor, Patty Hall.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 15, 2025
A living donor liver transplant involves removing a section of liver from the donor and transplanting it into the recipient.
From BBC ● Mar. 2, 2025
"We found that people were actively transplanting and cultivating hazelnuts hundreds of kilometers from their place of origin," Armstrong explains of the expansive trade activity the maps illustrated.
From Science Daily ● Dec. 6, 2024
On the edge of the garden in a cold frame the tomato and bell pepper and cabbage sets were nearly ready for transplanting, waiting only for the passing of the frost danger.
From "East of Eden" by John Steinbeck
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.
