irrigate

verb ir·ri·gate \ ˈir-ə-ˌgāt \

|Updated on: 12 Jun 2018

Examples: irrigate in a Sentence

Definition of irrigate

irrigated; irrigating

transitive verb

1 : wet, moisten: such as

a : to supply (land, crops, etc.) with water by artificial means

irrigating the cotton plants

irrigates 20 acres of farmland

b : to flush (a body part) with a stream of liquid

irrigate the wound with saline solution

the eye was irrigated following chemical exposure

2 : to refresh as if by watering

intransitive verb

: to practice irrigation

A tensiometer (soil moisture probe), available at any garden center, helps take the guesswork out of irrigating.
—The Benicia (California) Herald

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irrigator

play \ˈir-ə-ˌgā-tər\ noun

See irrigate defined for English-language learners

See irrigate defined for kids

Examples of irrigate in a Sentence

The surgeon irrigated the wound.
if you get the chemical in your eye, irrigate the eye thoroughly with water

Recent Examples of irrigate from the Web

After you plant and irrigate (see below), mulch with a thick layer of organic matter.

— nan sterman, sandiegouniontribune.com, "Branching out with new crops," 31 May 2018
Chaves said his vote will be based on the billions of dollars in investment to irrigate local farms with waters from the transfer of the Sao Francisco River.

— mauricio savarese, Fox News, "With Brazil's da Silva in jail, his region's vote in doubt," 29 May 2018
For decades, authorities diverted the rivers that fed the landlocked Aral Sea to irrigate fields.

— chris mooney, chicagotribune.com, "Humans are causing massive changes in the location of water all over the Earth, NASA says," 17 May 2018
The rest would go mostly to irrigate golf courses and water landscaping.

— lauren ritchie, OrlandoSentinel.com, "Villages of West Lake 'designed to capture' water, but developer wants millions of gallons more," 29 Apr. 2018
The pediatric guidelines are slightly different, but the tests typically include checking for a response after touching the patient’s eye with a piece of tissue paper, shining a light on the pupils, and irrigating the ears with ice water.

— tom avril, Philly.com, "At CHOP, two boys were diagnosed with brain death. Here's what that means," 24 May 2018
Scientists said the steam clouds at the spots where lava entered the ocean were laced with hydrochloric acid and fine glass particles that can irrigate the skin and eyes and cause breathing problems.

— CBS News, "Lava from Hawaii volcano oozes into ocean, creating new toxic hazard," 21 May 2018
The interaction of lava and seawater has created a cloud of steam laced with hydrochloric acid and fine glass particles that can irrigate the skin and eyes and cause breathing problems.

— Washington Post, "Faster-moving Hawaii lava gushes into sea, spews new danger," 20 May 2018
By the 1770s, the village was thriving, with a church, markets, ranches and farm fields irrigated by acequias that carried water from the creek and the river.

— scott huddleston, San Antonio Express-News, "San Antonio’s ‘birthday week’ begins Tuesday," 30 Apr. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'irrigate.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of irrigate

Latin irrigatus, past participle of irrigare, from in- + rigare to water; perhaps akin to Old High German regan rain — more at rain

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1615

in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

See Words from the same year

irrigate Synonyms

Synonyms

flush, rinse, sluice, wash, wash out;

Related Words

deluge, engulf, flood, inundate, swamp;

flow, gush, rush, stream;

drench, saturate, soak;

douse (also dowse), slosh, splash;

IRRIGATE Defined for English Language Learners

irrigate

verb

Definition of irrigate for English Language Learners

: to supply (something, such as land) with water by using artificial means (such as pipes)
medical : to clean (a wound or a part of the body) with flowing liquid (such as water)