proliferate

verb

pro·​lif·​er·​ate prə-ˈli-fə-ˌrāt 

proliferated; proliferating

intransitive verb

1

: to grow by rapid production of new parts, cells, buds, or offspring

2

: to increase in number as if by proliferating : multiply

transitive verb

1

: to cause to grow by proliferating

2

: to cause to increase in number or extent as if by proliferating

proliferation

prə-ˌli-fə-ˈrā-shən 

noun

proliferative

prə-ˈli-fə-ˌrā-tiv  prə-ˈli-f(ə-)rə-tiv 

adjective

Did you know?

Proliferate is a back-formation of proliferation. That means that proliferation came first (we borrowed it from French in the 1700s), and was later shortened to form the verb. Proliferation originally referred to the botanical phenomenon of some plants having buds, flowers, or other parts that are adventitious—that is, that arise or occur sporadically or in other than the usual location (e.g. pitch pines’ ability to sprout new trees directly from their stumps after a fire). With advances in the study of biology in the 1800s, proliferation came to be used to refer to the rapid and repeated production of cells by division. That sense in turn begat the verb proliferate, which eventually came to be used when anything—whether living (such as yeast) or nonliving (such as data)—quickly increases or multiplies.

Synonyms

• accelerate
• accumulate
• appreciate
• balloon
• boom
• build up
• burgeon
• bourgeon
• climb
• enlarge
• escalate
• expand
• gain
• increase
• mount
• multiply
• mushroom
• rise
• roll up
• snowball
• spread
• swell
• wax

Examples of proliferate in a Sentence

rumors about the incident proliferated on the Internet

Recent Examples on the Web

Remakes and remasters proliferate year after year, some expected like Resident Evil, others long overdue like The Legacy Of Kain: Soul Reaver, and still others shocking, like the PlayStation 1 era platforming relic Croc: Legend Of The Gobbos. —Jason Fanelli, Rolling Stone, 5 Nov. 2024

Skye Perryman, the president and CEO of Democracy Forward—a legal nonprofit that works to protect democracy—knows too well that election denialism and false claims that have proliferated since the 2020 election. —Forbestv, Forbes, 4 Nov. 2024

Photo: Adrian Nina Ormerod’s splash of pink tulle reflects a wider trend for tinted veils that has proliferated in alternative corners of the Western wedding sphere, where women aren’t robbed of £50 for a warm glass of Prosecco and the privilege of wriggling into a grubby one-size-fits-all sample. —Alice Newbold, Vogue, 4 Nov. 2024

Bartenders’ conversations about sustainability—which are proliferating from Los Angeles’s fine-dining spot Providence to Chicago cocktail destination the Whistler—originated overseas. —Jason O'Bryan, Robb Report, 2 Nov. 2024

Word History

Etymology

back-formation from proliferation, from French prolifération, from proliférer to proliferate, from prolifère reproducing freely, from Latin proles + -fer -ferous

First Known Use

1866, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 1

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Kids Definition

proliferate

verb

pro·​lif·​er·​ate prə-ˈlif-ə-ˌrāt 

proliferated; proliferating

: to grow or increase rapidly

proliferation

-ˌlif-ə-ˈrā-shən 

noun

Medical Definition

proliferate

verb

pro·​lif·​er·​ate prə-ˈlif-ə-ˌrāt 

proliferated; proliferating

intransitive verb

: to grow by rapid production of new parts, cells, buds, or offspring

transitive verb

: to cause to grow by proliferating