populate
verb
pop·u·late
| \ ˈpä-pyə-ˌlāt
\
\
populated;
populating
Definition of populate
2a
: to furnish or provide with inhabitants : people
b
: to provide with members
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Examples of populate in a Sentence
Immigrants began to populate the area in the late 19th century.
Strange creatures populate the ocean depths.
Recent Examples on the Web
The only highway ends abruptly in a handful of structures populated by beachgoers looking for alcohol and fishermen who might catch sharks one day and unload cocaine the next. — Maria Verza, USA TODAY, "Mexico’s forgotten border town mixes sun, sand, crime and drug trafficking," 27 Aug. 2019 The studio has offered Last Jedi director Rian Johnson the opportunity to make a trilogy of new movies based on the Star Wars universe but populated by entirely new characters and creatures. — Eliana Dockterman, Time, "What's Happening in the Star Wars Universe After Episode IX: The Rise of Skywalker?," 24 Aug. 2019 The soft yellows and big picture that denote the past is gone and in their place is a widescreen, cinematic image populated by icy grays and greens. — Ariana Romero, refinery29.com, "Here Is Your New Trick To Recognizing A 13 Reasons Why Flashback," 24 Aug. 2019 There are a few houses across the river and a rope swing populated by a group of boys getting the last gasp of summer before school begins. — Peter Marteka, courant.com, "A journey along the Farmington River in Bloomfield," 23 Aug. 2019 Ahead of the Ravens’ third preseason game, here are eight Ravens who could stand to benefit from the team’s recent injury bug: McSorley will play his first road game in the NFL at a stadium populated by more than a few Penn State fans. — Jonas Shaffer, baltimoresun.com, "Here are 8 Ravens players who could benefit from team’s recent injury problems in preseason game vs. Eagles," 22 Aug. 2019 All this after Jimmy woke up in Gorilla City (yes, the DC universe has a city populated entirely by intelligent gorillas) having accidentally married an interdimensional jewel thief. — Christian Holub, EW.com, "Jimmy Olsen creators discuss their zany comic and what it takes to be friends with Superman," 21 Aug. 2019 These are lands that once belonged to Mexico, said Castro, lands now populated by mostly people of two countries. — Dallas News, "Mexico vows solidarity, talks tough as the nation copes with the El Paso massacre," 6 Aug. 2019 The tragedy was followed less than 24 hours later by a mass shooting in Dayton, Ohio, in which a gunman killed nine people after opening fire on a crowded street populated by bars. — Rachel Desantis, PEOPLE.com, "Blink-182 Postpone El Paso Concert After Shooting as Mark Hoppus Details His Hotel Lockdown," 4 Aug. 2019These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'populate.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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More Definitions for populate
populate
verb
English Language Learners Definition of populate
: to live in (a country, city, area, etc.) : to make up the population of (a place)
See the full definition for populate in the English Language Learners Dictionary
populate
verb
pop·u·late
| \ ˈpä-pyə-ˌlāt
\
\
populated;
populating
Kids Definition of populate
1
: to live in : inhabit
2
to provide with inhabitants
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