inundated; inundating
Synonyms of inundate

transitive verb

1
: overwhelm
was inundated with phone calls
2
: to cover with a flood : overflow

Did you know?

In the summer of 1993, record rains in the Midwest caused the Mississippi River to overflow its banks, break through levees, and inundate the entire countryside; such an inundation hadn't been seen for at least a hundred years. By contrast, the Nile River inundated its entire valley every year, bringing the rich black silt that made the valley one of the most fertile places on earth. (The inundations ceased with the completion of the Aswan High Dam in 1970.) Whenever a critical issue is being debated, the White House and Congressional offices are inundated with phone calls and emails, just as a town may be inundated with complaints when it starts charging a fee for garbage pickup.

Examples of inundate in a Sentence

Rising rivers could inundate low-lying areas. water from the overflowing bathtub inundated the bathroom floor
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Five years later, Florida school boards are still inundated with requests to ban books. Trinity Webster-Bass, Miami Herald, 21 July 2026 Previously contained by Happy Madison and the occasional Gary Sánchez outing, we’re now inundated by comedies about the leisurely arts. Bethy Squires, Vulture, 21 July 2026 The online public sphere was inundated with drone footage, satellite imagery, news coverage, and NASA maps laying bare the scale of the devastation. Rafael Osío Cabrices, Time, 20 July 2026 No timeline has been offered for the repair and reopening of a section of Sunset Boulevard where a ruptured line inundated a neighborhood with 17 million gallons of water last week. Hannah Fry, Los Angeles Times, 20 July 2026 See All Example Sentences for inundate

Word History

Etymology

Latin inundatus, past participle of inundare, from in- + unda wave — more at water

First Known Use

1590, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Time Traveler
The first known use of inundate was in 1590

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Inundate.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/inundate. Accessed 27 Jul. 2026.

Kids Definition

inundated; inundating
1
: to cover with a flood : deluge entry 1
2
: overwhelm sense 2
inundated with email

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