seep

verb

ˈsēp 

seeped; seeping; seeps

intransitive verb

1

: to flow or pass slowly through fine pores or small openings : ooze

water seeped in through a crack

2

a

: to enter or penetrate slowly

… fear of nuclear war had seeped into the national consciousness.

—Tip O'Neill

b

: to become diffused or spread

… a sadness seeped through his being.

—Agnes S. Turnbull

Synonyms of seep

• drip
• flow
• percolate
• ooze
• exude
• bleed
• weep

Examples of seep in a Sentence

Blood was seeping through the bandage.

The chemicals seeped into the ground.

Recent Examples on the Web

Vegas is a different animal, and Game 1 showed the frustration seeping through for the first line. —Stephen Whyno, Twin Cities, 3 June 2026

Some of the poet’s most hallucinatory imagery seeps through the corners of the screen. —Siddhant Adlakha, Variety, 2 June 2026

In a new documentary from The Frontier and ProPublica, reporter Nick Bowlin investigates a scourge of oil field wastewater seeping into the lives of Oklahomans, about half of whom live within a mile of an oil and gas operation. —Katie Campbell, ProPublica, 2 June 2026

And once bro culture seeps in, the signs are hard to ignore. —Teresa Hopke, Forbes.com, 1 June 2026

Word History

Etymology

alteration of earlier sipe, from Middle English sipen, from Old English sipian; akin to Middle Low German sipen to seep

First Known Use

1790, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for seep

• beep
• cheap
• creep
• deep
• heap
• jeep
• keep
• leap
• peep
• reap
• sheep
• sleep

Kids Definition

seep

verb

ˈsēp

: to flow or pass slowly through small openings : ooze