to percolate
3
6.4
- verb
- /ˈpɜrkəˌleɪt/
- Specialized
:
percolar
- Water percolated through the island's mountainous interior and emerged here in a hundred places.
- water percolates
- percolate into the soil
And gradually it percolates down and over maybe a week order a week, it makes its way downstream.
- And gradually it percolates down and over maybe a week order a week, it makes its way downstream.
Examples
-
The amount of snow that percolates into the bed depends on weather as well as the runoff estimate.
Academic text (1996) -
And they water the parks and the gardens and things like that, and that percolates down into the groundwater.
Blog text (15) -
Their retention of the flow allows some of the runoff water to percolate into the soil.
Academic text (2001) -
Some of the salt deposited by irrigation water on the fields has percolated into subterranean aquifers.
Academic text (2000) -
Soil microorganisms break down the organic contaminants, and the treated water percolates to recharge the underlying groundwater.
Academic text (2002) -
As the rain fell, the water began to percolate through the layers of soil, nourishing the plants underground.
-
The coffee grounds were placed in the machine, and soon water started to percolate through them, creating a rich brew.
-
After several hours, the water had percolated deep into the sandy soil, making it moist and ready for planting.
Synonyms
138
3.0
To pass something through a device that removes unwanted parts
82
2.7
To move slowly through small holes or cracks
25
3.0
To move slowly through a surface into something
24
6.0
To spread through something and reach every part
3
3.5
Liquid flows slowly out of something through small holes
1
4.8
To flow slowly through small holes or cracks
Cause light, color or liquid to spread through something
How Fast
Surface Forms
Morphology
percolate = percol + ate
Although historically analyzable as Latin per- + colare ('to strain/flow through') plus -ate, these components are not productive or recognizable to average learners, so they cannot reliably derive the meaning 'to pass slowly through a porous material'.
Etymology
Percolate comes from Latin per- 'through' and colare 'to strain', giving the image of a liquid slowly moving 'through' a porous material like a filter or cloth. That's why to percolate something is to let a liquid pass slowly through a substance.