stagnate

verb

stag·​nate ˈstag-ˌnāt 

stagnated; stagnating

intransitive verb

: to become or remain stagnant

a puddle of stagnating water

wages stagnated

Examples of stagnate in a Sentence

a puddle of stagnating water

Recent Examples on the Web

For instance, the loss of the EV incentive heightened the drop in EV volume and market share, but both were stagnating approximately a year before the incentive went away. — Karl Brauer, Forbes.com, 20 July 2026

Years of austerity that followed the 2008 financial crash mean economic growth – and household incomes – have largely stagnated since then. — Issy Ronald, CNN Money, 17 July 2026

That includes the success of the USMNT, which has stagnated over the past decade on soccer’s biggest stage. — Scott Soshnick, Sportico.com, 16 July 2026

Shares had fallen nearly 21% over the past three months as the chain’s same-store sales growth stagnated, raising concerns about a high valuation. — Liz Napolitano, CNBC, 15 July 2026

Word History

Etymology

Latin stagnatus, past participle of stagnare, from stagnum body of standing water

First Known Use

1661, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for stagnate

• abate
• airfreight
• await
• baseplate
• berate
• birthdate
• birthrate
• bookplate
• borate
• breastplate
• bromate
• casemate

Kids Definition

stagnate

verb

stag·​nate ˈstag-ˌnāt 

stagnated; stagnating

: to be or become stagnant

stagnation

stag-ˈnā-shən 

noun