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to copulate

to copulate

10 7.9
To have sex, usually used for animals or in biology
  • verb
  • /ˈkɒpjʊleɪt/
  • NSFW
translation icon : copular
  • And unlike many other animals, human beings don't simply copulate and then go on their way.
  • females copulate
  • males copulate
  • animals copulate

Whereby if an animal copulates, then the male is in a refractory.

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Examples

  • And then, immediately afterwards, they copulate under their animal aspect.

    Academic text (1992)
  • The Organism is concerned with eating, copulating, laying in the sun, staying alive, all sorts of things.

  • Each male wants to convince every visiting female to copulate with him, and not with the guy down the hill.

    Academic text (2010)
  • The female copulates with the male just before her first trip to sea.

    Academic text (2004)
  • The adult wasp chews its way through the tree and copulates.

  • The penguins were milling, copulating, sleeping, and standing in the snow (figure 3).

    Academic text (2008)
  • In the spring, many birds copulate to ensure the survival of their species.

  • The study observed how often certain insects copulate during their mating season.

  • During the mating ritual, the male snake copulates with the female to transfer sperm.

Synonyms

to have sex
vsto copulate
  • NSFW
3.0

To touch each other's private parts for physical pleasure

is more formal and oriented to animal or biological contexts
to do it
vsto copulate
  • NSFW
999 9.8

To have sex with someone

is a formal biological term used mainly for animals rather than casual speech
to mate
vsto copulate
  • NSFW
83 2.8

To have sex to produce young

is the technical term used mainly in biological and animal contexts
to have intercourse
vsto copulate
  • NSFW
23 8.1

To have sex with someone

is a more scientific animal-focused expression rather than general human usage
to mount
vsto copulate
  • NSFW
20 8.8

To climb onto another animal to mate with it

is the broader biological term covering the act across animal species
to pair
vsto copulate
  • NSFW
8 5.7

To come together to mate and have young

is more formal and focused on biological reproduction rather than casual use
to couple
vsto copulate
  • NSFW
5 8.1

To have sex with another person or animal

is more clinical and mainly used for animals in biology

How Formal

to copulate
  • NSFW
10 7.9
to make love
  • NSFW
296 5.3
to have sex
  • NSFW
3.0
to sleep with
  • NSFW
652 7.4
to screw
  • Offensive
205 9.9

Surface Forms

copulate infinitive
copulated past
copulated past participle
copulating present participle
copulates third person singular

Morphology

copulate = copula (semi-transparent) = copul + ate

The base 'copula' relates to connection, but the specific biological meaning of 'copulate' is not immediately clear from 'copula'.

Etymology

Copulate comes from the Latin root copula, meaning 'a link' or 'a bond'. It is the same root as the English word couple, so to copulate is to 'join together' physically, which is why it means 'to have sex'.