gravitate
verb
Rose Friedman
Did you know?
The force is strong in the family of words descended from the Latin adjective gravis, meaning “heavy”: gravitation has it, graviton has it, and gravitate has it, too. That force is gravity (gravity being another gravis descendent), a fundamental physical force that is responsible for bringing us literally back down to earth (or Tattooine, as it were). But you don’t have to be a full-fledged linguistic Jedi, young padawan, to know that gravity, like its Latin ancestor, also has figurative meanings, as does gravitate. When it first landed in the 17th century, gravitate meant “to apply pressure or weight,” and later it maintained its connection to literal gravity with a sense (still in use today) meaning “to move under the effect of gravitation.” It then, however, acquired a more general sense of “to move toward something” (such as toward a specific location), and finally a metaphorical sense of “to be attracted,” as in, “when choosing movies to watch she often gravitates toward space operas.”
Examples of gravitate in a Sentence
Cortne Bonilla, Vogue, 9 Dec. 2024
Pickup aficionados who are concerned about climate change will naturally gravitate to the most efficient models, but all should feel entitled to ignore minor variations in electric fuel economy when customizing their Rivian pickup.
—Peter Douglas, The Mercury News, 8 Dec. 2024
People gravitate toward leaders who are authentic and vulnerable.
—Tifenn Dano Kwan, Forbes, 3 Dec. 2024
In her work, O’Carroll sees many Millennial and Gen Z parents gravitating toward this approach.
—Hannah Nwoko, Parents, 2 Dec. 2024
See all Example Sentences for gravitate 
Dictionary Entries Near gravitate
Cite this Entry
“Gravitate.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/gravitate. Accessed 21 Dec. 2024.
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gravitate
verb
Medical Definition
gravitate
intransitive verb
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