populate

verb

pop·​u·​late ˈpä-pyə-ˌlāt 

populated; populating

transitive verb

1

: to have a place in : occupy, inhabit

Strange creatures populate the deep ocean.

2

a

: to furnish or provide with inhabitants : people

… there were survivors, and their descendants populate the world today.

—Walter Alvarez

b

: to provide with members

Synonyms of populate

• 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

More than 3,500 athletes from 93 countries will populate six different villages across Northern Italy. —Jacob Feldman, Sportico.com, 6 Jan. 2026

In movies like Sátántangó, Werckmeister Harmonies, and his extraordinary swan song, 2011’s The Turin Horse, the Hungarian filmmaker crafted dreamlike narratives populated with disillusioned, spiritually bereft characters facing harsh realities. —Tim Grierson, Rolling Stone, 6 Jan. 2026

That sets it apart from the myriad space operas populating big-budget TV in recent years; the relationships are the real substance of the show, the interstellar adventures are the dessert. —Will Harris, Entertainment Weekly, 4 Jan. 2026

Visitors can make their way between a dazzling planetarium, an aquarium with live coral reefs, a natural history museum, and even an indoor rainforest dome populated by hundreds of tropical birds and butterflies. —Cu Fleshman, Travel + Leisure, 4 Jan. 2026

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