as in to increase
to become greater in extent, volume, amount, or number
rumors about the incident proliferated on the Internet
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Recent Examples of proliferate
Without them, rotting carrion — and the potentially harmful bacteria contained within — can proliferate and then spread disease if humans come into close contact or by contaminating water.
—
Jonathan Lambert, NPR, 11 July 2025
An inclusive poster that was banned in West Ada classrooms — only to proliferate on T-shirts, yard signs and marquees as a form of protest — is now a permanent fixture at a school in Rochester, N.Y.
—Carly Flandro, Idaho Statesman, 29 June 2025
Medical literature is proliferating at a meteoric rate—doubling in size every five years—as new treatment options like gene therapies are developed and scientists learn more about how different diseases and drugs may interact with each other.
—Amy Feldman, Forbes.com, 15 July 2025
As in World War I, military bases proliferated, shipbuilding increased, and armament factories popped up all over the state.
—Michael Barnes, Austin American Statesman, 15 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for proliferate
Jonathan Lambert, NPR, 11 July 2025
An inclusive poster that was banned in West Ada classrooms — only to proliferate on T-shirts, yard signs and marquees as a form of protest — is now a permanent fixture at a school in Rochester, N.Y.
—Carly Flandro, Idaho Statesman, 29 June 2025
Medical literature is proliferating at a meteoric rate—doubling in size every five years—as new treatment options like gene therapies are developed and scientists learn more about how different diseases and drugs may interact with each other.
—Amy Feldman, Forbes.com, 15 July 2025
As in World War I, military bases proliferated, shipbuilding increased, and armament factories popped up all over the state.
—Michael Barnes, Austin American Statesman, 15 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for proliferate
Recent Examples of Synonyms for proliferate
Verb
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Trump also targeted Walmart after the retailer warned its prices would increase to absorb the cost of his tariffs.—
Ty Roush,
Forbes.com,
6 Aug. 2025
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The addition of more NFL programming increases the value.—
Joe Reedy,
Baltimore Sun,
6 Aug. 2025
Verb
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The two battled underneath the stage, and Cena brilliantly rose up on the elevator shaft carrying Cody Rhodes.—
Alfred Konuwa,
Forbes.com,
4 Aug. 2025
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Vanguard expects value stocks to rise by 5.8% to 7.8% a year over the next decade.—
Daniel de Visé,
USA Today,
3 Aug. 2025
Verb
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As for Nowak’s question about the possibility of AWS’ growth rate accelerating in the back half of the year, Jassy wouldn’t directly answer it but stressed his optimism, in part stemming from AWS customers starting to deploy more AI products at scale that should continue to ramp in coming quarters.—
Geoff Colvin,
Fortune,
1 Aug. 2025
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With complete control of its destiny, the WSL has accelerated its growth, becoming one of the premier women’s leagues in the world, alongside the National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) in the U.S. and Spain’s Liga F.—
Vitas Carosella,
Forbes.com,
1 Aug. 2025
Verb
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The Visual Media & Platform division, which includes anime and mobile content in Japan, also expanded.—
Naman Ramachandran,
Variety,
7 Aug. 2025
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Senate Bill 19, passed during the 2025 legislative session, expanded on a preexisting law that allowed parents to pull students from school for moral instruction one hour each week.—
Keely Doll,
The Courier-Journal,
7 Aug. 2025
Verb
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This leads to swelling and a build-up of fluids in the area, which can cause cloudy vision and other changes.—
Angelica Bottaro,
Verywell Health,
30 July 2025
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Dolphins head coach McDaniel also stated that there was too much swelling in Kohou's knee to determine what the injury truly is.—
James Brizuela,
MSNBC Newsweek,
29 July 2025
Verb
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The online posts began to multiply soon after Signal 99, an anonymous Facebook page with an emphasis on law and order in Cincinnati, shared one of the videos early Saturday morning with a caption mocking Cincinnati Mayor Aftab Pureval.—
Dan Horn,
The Enquirer,
30 July 2025
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Rather than multiplying the existing pixels on screen, Google’s generative AI tools created new pixels to increase the definition and scale of the film.—
Dani Di Placido,
Forbes.com,
30 July 2025
Verb
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If your body doesn’t produce enough insulin, sugar accumulates in your blood and can damage blood vessels.—
Carley Millhone,
Health,
4 Aug. 2025
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That basic awareness of what's coming in and going out will enable you to form a financial plan that's more action-oriented than just trying to accumulate wealth, Smith says.—
Talia Wexler,
CNBC,
3 Aug. 2025
Verb
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But in these recent times, Ford's leaders have intensified their examination of its Chinese rivals viewing them as the top competition to learn from — and beat.—
Jamie L. LaReau,
Freep.com,
1 Aug. 2025
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But as the region shifted back to a dry pattern, fire behavior intensified.—
Hayleigh Evans,
AZCentral.com,
1 Aug. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Proliferate.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/proliferate. Accessed 13 Aug. 2025.
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