propagate

[prop-uh-geyt]

verb (used with object)

propagated, propagating 

1. to cause (an organism) to multiply by any process of natural reproduction from the parent stock.

2. to reproduce (itself, its kind, etc.), as an organism does.

3. to transmit (hereditary features or elements) to, or through, offspring.

4. to spread (a report, doctrine, practice, etc.) from person to person; disseminate.

5. to cause to increase in number or amount.

6. to create (an effect) at a distance, as by electromagnetic waves, compression waves, etc., traveling through space or a physical medium; transmit.

   to propagate sound.

7. to spread (a disease) from one individual to another.

   Dr. John Atlee believed believed that filthy living conditions probably propagated cholera.

8. Computers.,  to cause (an update or other alteration) to take effect throughout a network of devices.

   The active master database replicates updates to the standby master database, which propagates the updates to the subscribers.

verb (used without object)

propagated, propagating 

1. to multiply by any process of natural reproduction, as organisms; breed.

2. to increase in extent, as a structural flaw.

   The crack will propagate only to this joint.

3. (of electromagnetic waves, compression waves, etc.) to travel through space or a physical medium.

4. Computers.,  to take effect throughout a network of devices.

propagate

/ ˈprɒpəˌɡeɪt /

verb

1. biology to reproduce or cause to reproduce; breed

2. (tr) horticulture to produce (plants) by layering, grafting, cuttings, etc

3. (tr) to promulgate; disseminate

4. physics to move through, cause to move through, or transmit, esp in the form of a wave

   to propagate sound

5. (tr) to transmit (characteristics) from one generation to the next

Other Word Forms

• propagational adjective
• propagation noun
• propagative adjective
• propagatory adjective
• propagator noun
• nonpropagative adjective
• self-propagating adjective
• unpropagative adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of propagate¹

First recorded in 1560–70; from Latin propāgātus (past participle of propāgāre “to reproduce (a plant) by cuttings, spread for sprouting, propagate, enlarge),” equivalent to propāg(ēs) “something set out, scion, slip” ( pro- pro- ¹ + pāg-, base of pangere “to fasten” + -ēs noun suffix) + -ātus -ate ¹

Word History and Origins

Origin of propagate¹

C16: from Latin propāgāre to increase (plants) by cuttings, from propāgēs a cutting, from pangere to fasten

Example Sentences

To develop a whole-virus vaccine, researchers must first spend months isolating and propagating the virus.

From Salon

“And people have observed that when the fault is very smooth, the rupture ... tends to propagate at a velocity” so fast that it results in an “extremely elongated rupture,” Avouac said.

From Los Angeles Times

“We don’t know if we could have well-communicated and sort of avoided those conspiracy theories and misinformation. But it was just so propagated in the media that it just took over.”

From Salon

She started propagating succulent and houseplant cuttings, potting them in vessels she got from neighbors on a Buy Nothing group.

From Los Angeles Times

In Nazi Germany, universities were purged of Jewish professors and political dissidents, while academic disciplines were reshaped to propagate racial pseudoscience and Aryan supremacy.

From Salon

Related Words

• circulate 
• disseminate 
• publicize 
• transmit