propagate

verb

prop·​a·​gate ˈprä-pə-ˌgāt 

propagated; propagating

transitive verb

1

: to cause to continue or increase by sexual or asexual reproduction

2

: to pass along to offspring

3

a

: to cause to spread out and affect a greater number or greater area : extend

b

: to foster growing knowledge of, familiarity with, or acceptance of (something, such as an idea or belief) : publicize

c

: to transmit (something, such as sound or light) through a medium

intransitive verb

1

: to multiply sexually or asexually

2

: increase, extend

3

: to travel through space or a material

—used of wave energy (such as light, sound, or radio waves)

propagative

ˈprä-pə-ˌgā-tiv 

adjective

propagator

ˈprä-pə-ˌgā-tər 

noun

Did you know?

The origins of propagate are firmly rooted in the field of horticulture. The word is a 16th century Latin borrowing, ultimately from the verb propagare, which means "to set (onto a plant) a small shoot or twig cut for planting or grafting." The word's meaning quickly extended from the realm of the farm and field to less material kinds of reproduction, such as the spreading of ideas and beliefs. The similarity between propagate and propaganda is not coincidental; that word also comes to us from propagare, although it took a more circuitous route.

Synonyms

• reproduce
• multiply

Examples of propagate in a Sentence

We are discovering new ways to propagate plants without seeds.

He propagated the apple tree by grafting.

The plants failed to propagate.

Recent Examples on the Web

The researchers simulated the way airport and military radar signals from New York’s JFK and London’s Heathrow and Gatwick propagate through space. —Jamie Carter, Forbes.com, 8 July 2025

The easiest way to propagate blanket flowers is to encourage plants to self-sow in the garden. —Kim Toscano, Southern Living, 3 July 2025

They can be easily propagated at home after they are established. —Erica Browne Grivas, Better Homes & Gardens, 2 July 2025

Dawkins’s 1976 bestseller, The Selfish Gene, and Wilson’s field-defining 1975 book, Sociobiology, proposed that nearly any feature of human society could be explained in terms of its propensity to propagate the genes responsible for it. —Erik Baker, Harpers Magazine, 18 June 2025

Word History

Etymology

Latin propagatus, past participle of propagare to set slips, propagate, from propages slip, offspring, from pro- before + pangere to fasten — more at pro-, pact

First Known Use

1535, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

Rhymes for propagate

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

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Kids Definition

propagate

verb

prop·​a·​gate ˈpräp-ə-ˌgāt 

propagated; propagating

1

: to have or cause to have offspring : multiply sense 1

ways to propagate plants without seeds

propagate an apple by grafting

2

: to cause (as an idea or belief) to spread out and affect a greater number or wider area

propagate a faith

Medical Definition

propagate

verb

prop·​a·​gate ˈpräp-ə-ˌgāt 

propagated; propagating

transitive verb

1

: to cause to continue or increase by sexual or asexual reproduction

2

: to cause to spread or to be transmitted

intransitive verb

: to multiply sexually or asexually

propagable

ˈpräp-ə-gə-bəl 

adjective

propagative

-ˌgāt-iv 

adjective