Permeate

//ˈpɜːmiˌeɪt// noun, verb

noun, verb ·Moderate ·College level

Definitions

Noun
  1. 1
    A watery by-product of milk production.
  2. 2
    Liquid that has passed through a filtration system.
Verb
  1. 1
    To pass through the pores or interstices of; to penetrate and pass through without causing rupture or displacement; applied especially to fluids which pass through substances of loose texture transitive

    "water permeates sand"

  2. 2
    penetrate mutually or be interlocked wordnet
  3. 3
    To enter and spread through; to pervade. transitive

    "Bright sunshine permeates the room on a sunny day."

  4. 4
    spread or diffuse through wordnet
  5. 5
    pass through wordnet

Synonyms

All synonyms
interpenetratepercolateabsorbbathebespreadbesprinkle

Example

More examples

"The world of dreams is a set of stages where virtual realities permeate one another."

Etymology

First attested in 1656; borrowed from Latin permeātus, perfect passive participle of permeō (“to pass through”), see -ate (verb-forming suffix) and -ate (noun-forming suffix).

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Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.