percolate

verb

per·​co·​late ˈpər-kə-ˌlāt 

nonstandard

-kyə- 

percolated; percolating

transitive verb

1

a

: to cause (a solvent) to pass through a permeable substance (such as a powdered drug) especially for extracting a soluble constituent

b

: to prepare (coffee) in a percolator

2

: to be diffused through : penetrate

intransitive verb

1

: to ooze or trickle through a permeable substance : seep

2

a

: to become percolated

b

: to become lively or effervescent

3

: to spread gradually

allow the sunlight to percolate into our rooms

—Norman Douglas

4

: simmer sense 2a

the feud had been percolating for a long time

percolation

ˌpər-kə-ˈlā-shən 

noun

Did you know?

Percolate comes from a Latin verb meaning "to put through a sieve". Something that percolates filters through something else, just as small particles pass through a sieve. Water is drawn downward through the soil, and this percolation usually cleans the water. A slow rain is ideal for percolating into the soil, since in a violent rainstorm most of it quickly runs off. For this reason, drip irrigation is the most effective and water-conserving form of irrigation. Percolation isn't always a physical process; awareness of an issue may percolate slowly into the minds of the public, just as Spanish words may gradually percolate into English, often starting in the Southwest.

Synonyms

• bleed
• exude
• ooze
• seep
• strain
• sweat
• transude
• weep

Examples of percolate in a Sentence

Sunlight percolated down through the trees.

Rumors percolated throughout the town.

There is nothing like percolating coffee over an open campfire.

Coffee was percolating on the stove.

Recent Examples on the Web

Which is just fine, for those of us who loved the percolating mid-tempo sounds and rhythms of her most recent all-original album. —Chris Willman, Variety, 26 Oct. 2023

That question started percolating in the 1990s among economists who wondered if the internet — which allowed markets to spring up in an instant, and attract participants from around the globe — could bring the idea of universal, real-time prediction markets to life. —Kevin Roose, New York Times, 8 Oct. 2023

Newton and Pearce percolated these ideas while working for the less extreme theorist Harry Stack Sullivan during an era of exploding interest in Freudian psychology. —Hannah E. Meyers, National Review, 10 Sep. 2023

That is a thought percolating through the minds of people who run the city. —Josh Ocampo, New York Times, 19 Oct. 2023

Popular narratives that failed to pan out As rates have risen, headlines of an impending U.S. debt crisis–and even eventual default–have steadily percolated. —Philipp Carlsson-Szlezak, Fortune, 12 Oct. 2023

For years, Luna and his neighbors have withstood noxious odors and poisonous chemicals percolating from wells beneath their feet. —Tony Briscoe, Los Angeles Times, 3 Oct. 2023

As an appeal from Lee’s family percolated through Maryland’s appellate courts, Urick provided his interpretation of the sloppily handwritten note to the attorney general’s office, which typically represents local prosecutors on appeals. —Alex Mann, Baltimore Sun, 19 Sep. 2023

This is something that has percolated since the end of the 2022 season, which resulted in an 8-9 record and a locker room furious with having to play with a first-time offensive coordinator. —Ben Volin, BostonGlobe.com, 8 Sep. 2023

See More

Word History

Etymology

Latin percolatus, past participle of percolare, from per- through + colare to sieve — more at per-, colander

First Known Use

1626, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1a

Kids Definition

percolate

verb

per·​co·​late ˈpər-kə-ˌlāt 

percolated; percolating

1

: to trickle or cause to trickle through something porous : filter, seep

water percolating through sand

2

: to prepare coffee in a percolator

3

: to be or become spread through : penetrate

Medical Definition

percolate

1 of 2 verb

per·​co·​late ˈpər-kə-ˌlāt 

percolated; percolating

transitive verb

1

: to cause (a solvent) to pass through a permeable substance (as a powdered drug) especially for extracting a soluble constituent

2

: to be diffused through

intransitive verb

1

: to ooze or trickle through a permeable substance

2

: to become percolated

percolate

2 of 2 noun

per·​co·​late -ˌlāt  -lət 

: a product of percolation