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

Other Black soldiers populate the Army base and town as well as Native American and Latino characters. —Andrew McGowan, Variety, 10 Nov. 2025

Talamasca stars Nicholas Denton as a new recruit into an agency (called Talamasca) that monitors the activities of the various supernatural beings that populate Rice's stories. —Jordan Hoffman, Entertainment Weekly, 9 Nov. 2025

As a stocky playmaker who rarely sprints and often reduces the game to walking pace in an increasingly breakneck sport populated by iron men, Cherki’s timing of arrival into English football is where the dichotomy lies. —Jordan Campbell, New York Times, 8 Nov. 2025

The station is frequently populated with both travelers and people looking for a place to sleep. —Kirsten Fiscus, Nashville Tennessean, 7 Nov. 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