verb
populate
PAHP-yuh-layt/ˈpɑːpjuleɪt/
To fill a place with inhabitants.
New residents populate the once-empty row of homes as they move in.
Etymology
“People” with a participial ending supplied the idea “peopled,” and English first used the word as an adjective. As a verb, it means furnishing a place with inhabitants or living there as its inhabitants.
In context
producing ever more eggs and babies to populate the nest. Chemicals released by the queen ensure that from birth each ant knows its designated role
More examples
- Families from nearby towns helped populate the new settlement.
- The island is sparsely populated, with most residents living along the coast.
- Thousands of seabirds populate the cliffs each spring.
Forms
populate · populates · populated · populating
population noun — All the inhabitants of a particular place.
repopulate verb — To fill a place with inhabitants again.