as in to inhabit
to supply with inhabitants
a small island populated only by woodland creatures
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of populate
With each Starship designed to hold 100 aeronauts, Musk predicts 10,000 flights of the capsule over the course of 20 years will populate this first city with one million human Martians.
—
Kevin Holden Platt, Forbes.com, 28 Aug. 2025
Lines snaked around every outside court, contrasting sharply with the ones only in use for practice, sparsely and quietly populated with players honing their skills for the bigger stages.
—Matthew Futterman, New York Times, 27 Aug. 2025
The idea that humans could one day populate and even colonize Mars is one no longer confined to the realm of science fiction.
—Eric Lagatta, USA Today, 22 Aug. 2025
Practical takes on unique shoewear have also populated the feeds, particularly in the active warmer months.
—Essence, 21 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for populate
Kevin Holden Platt, Forbes.com, 28 Aug. 2025
Lines snaked around every outside court, contrasting sharply with the ones only in use for practice, sparsely and quietly populated with players honing their skills for the bigger stages.
—Matthew Futterman, New York Times, 27 Aug. 2025
The idea that humans could one day populate and even colonize Mars is one no longer confined to the realm of science fiction.
—Eric Lagatta, USA Today, 22 Aug. 2025
Practical takes on unique shoewear have also populated the feeds, particularly in the active warmer months.
—Essence, 21 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for populate
Recent Examples of Synonyms for populate
Verb
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Prosecutors believe that the statute of limitations does not apply in the case because Morris did not reside in or inhabit Oklahoma for any period of time, Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond said in a March statement.—
Lillie Davidson,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
4 Sep. 2025
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Casati Stampa di Soncino inhabited Peggy Guggenheim’s former home Palazzo Venier dei Leoni and infused Venice with 1920s glamour, wild parties with big band music and monkeys and filled it with famous guests like her lover, poet Gabriele D’Annunzio and visual artist Man Ray.—
Sofia Celeste,
Footwear News,
4 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Diamandis’s network, known to its constituents as the Peterverse, is largely peopled by slim, graying, well-off men who finger their Oura rings like horcruxes.—
Tad Friend,
New Yorker,
4 Aug. 2025
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The mountains are peopled with guides, trail keepers and fellow travelers, as well as those who have died on their treks when the weather turned.—
Sadie Stein,
New York Times,
6 Apr. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Populate.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/populate. Accessed 8 Sep. 2025.
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