populate

verb

pop·​u·​late ˈpä-pyə-ˌlāt 

populated; populating

transitive verb

1

: to have a place in : occupy, inhabit

2

a

: to furnish or provide with inhabitants : people

b

: to provide with members

Synonyms

• inhabit
• people

Examples of populate in a Sentence

Immigrants began to populate the area in the late 19th century.

Strange creatures populate the ocean depths.

Recent Examples on the Web

And populating all four of our RAM slots with a 32GB stick of DDR5 avoids any unsightly blank spots inside our case. —ArsTechnica, 18 Aug. 2025

Users have the option of clicking on an icon that populates an online shopping cart at participating retail chains. —Eleanor Pringle, Fortune, 13 Aug. 2025

Each season takes place at a lower-division college populated by football players whose personal mistakes and setbacks landed them there instead of more prestigious programs. —Skyler Trepel Published, EW.com, 10 Aug. 2025

Last year, De les Coves and her collaborators studied a simple theory of a classical universe — one populated with objects in definite states, such as particles that are each in a specific spot. —Quanta Magazine, 8 Aug. 2025

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from Medieval Latin populātus, past participle of populāre "to provide with inhabitants,", derivative of Latin populus people entry 1

First Known Use

1578, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for populate

• abdicate
• abrogate
• acetate
• activate
• actuate
• adsorbate
• aggravate
• agitate
• alginate
• alienate
• allocate
• amputate

Kids Definition

populate

verb

pop·​u·​late ˈpäp-yə-ˌlāt 

populated; populating

1

: to have a place in : occupy, inhabit

2

: to provide with inhabitants : people