Definition of vegetate
vegetated
;vegetating
intransitive verb
1 : to lead a passive existence without exertion of body or mind
2a : to grow in the manner of a plant; also : to grow exuberantly or with proliferation of fleshy or warty outgrowthsb : to produce vegetation
transitive verb
: to establish vegetation in or on
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Examples of vegetate in a Sentence
I just spent the weekend vegetating at home.
I'm worried that after I retire I'll just sit at home, watch TV, and vegetate.
Recent Examples of vegetate from the Web
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Initial Chinese news reports contained no suggestion that officials had been warned that the steep, thinly vegetated hillside could collapse.
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The water settles into three biofiltration pools and vegetated beds below the light showers, after which it can be safely used by park goers.
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For them, as for most of us, plants were just there in the background, vegetating away.
These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'vegetate.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Origin and Etymology of vegetate
borrowed from Late Latin vegetātus, past participle of vegetāre “to live, grow,” going back to Latin, “to impart energy to, invigorate,” verbal derivative of vegetus “vigorous, active, lively,” probably, if from *vegitus, verbal adjective of vegēre “to give vigor to, enliven” — more at 1wake
VEGETATE Defined for English Language Learners
vegetate
playDefinition of vegetate for English Language Learners
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: to spend time doing things that do not require much thought or effort : to be very lazy or inactive
Learn More about vegetate
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See words that rhyme with vegetate Spanish Central: Translation of vegetate Nglish: Translation of vegetate for Spanish speakers
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