perpetuate
verb
per·pet·u·ate
pər-ˈpe-chə-ˌwāt 
perpetuated; perpetuating
: to make perpetual or cause to last indefinitely
perpetuate the species
Examples of perpetuate in a Sentence
He perpetuates the myth that his house is haunted.
Fears about an epidemic are being perpetuated by the media.
Recent Examples on the Web
Inside, attendees accused the protesters of liberal intolerance and perpetuating cancel culture.
—
Sacbee.com, 11 Nov. 2025
To get there, Puerto Ricans must demand transparency about military activities, insist on environmental justice, and hold accountable both local officials who enable this militarism and federal agencies that perpetuate it.
—Israel Melendez Ayala, Time, 10 Nov. 2025
The most recent era of Byrne’s life has been dedicated to perpetuating ideas of hopefulness and service.
—Amanda Petrusich, New Yorker, 10 Nov. 2025
During the meeting, Orban also appeared to undermine Ukraine’s position in the war and indicated that other European countries were perpetuating the conflict.
—Naomi Lim, The Washington Examiner, 7 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for perpetuate
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Sacbee.com, 11 Nov. 2025
To get there, Puerto Ricans must demand transparency about military activities, insist on environmental justice, and hold accountable both local officials who enable this militarism and federal agencies that perpetuate it.
—Israel Melendez Ayala, Time, 10 Nov. 2025
The most recent era of Byrne’s life has been dedicated to perpetuating ideas of hopefulness and service.
—Amanda Petrusich, New Yorker, 10 Nov. 2025
During the meeting, Orban also appeared to undermine Ukraine’s position in the war and indicated that other European countries were perpetuating the conflict.
—Naomi Lim, The Washington Examiner, 7 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for perpetuate
Cite this Entry
“Perpetuate.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/perpetuate. Accessed 16 Nov. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
perpetuate
verb
per·pet·u·ate
pər-ˈpech-ə-ˌwāt
perpetuated; perpetuating
: to make perpetual or cause to last indefinitely
Legal Definition
perpetuate
transitive verb
per·pet·u·ate
pər-ˈpe-chə-ˌwāt
perpetuated; perpetuating
: to preserve or make available (testimony) for later use at a trial by means of deposition especially when the evidence so gathered would be otherwise unavailable or lost
Note: Courts will not allow the perpetuation of testimony at a pretrial proceeding if it appears to be an attempt to fish for useful material.
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