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to saltate

to saltate

9.9
To move in short jumps often pushed by wind or water
  • verb
  • /ˈsɔːlteɪt/
  • Specialized
translation icon : saltar
  • As the river flowed, the small stones would saltate over one another, creating a beautiful music of nature.

Examples

  • First, saltating soil splashes up loose PM-10 that is resting on the surface of larger dirt particles.

    Academic text (1996)
  • The sand began to saltate across the beach as the wind picked up strength.

  • All three are initiated by bouncing or saltating soil particles.

    Academic text (1996)
  • Flakes of chipped stone, saltated in rivers.

    Fiction book (2001)
  • A few saltating grains.

    Fiction book (1999)
  • The tiny organisms in the puddle saltate swiftly in response to the sudden drop in temperature.

Antonyms

540 2.8

To become calm and still after movement or excitement

Not move from a place

How Discontinuous

to saltate
  • Specialized
9.9
to bounce
386 1.3
to hop
133 1.0

Surface Forms

saltate infinitive
saltated past
saltated past participle
saltating present participle
saltates third person singular

Etymology

Saltate comes from the Latin saltare 'to jump', so imagine tiny grains 'jumping' along the ground; this is why the word describes sand or small particles that move by short leaps in wind or water.