as in to inhabit
to supply with inhabitants
a small island populated only by woodland creatures
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Recent Examples of populate
Hummingbirds, obviously, are a different matter altogether; they’re not exactly known for populating our nightmares.
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Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 10 Jan. 2025
Taxonomic charts on the walls borrow the aesthetic of science but are populated with terms from the history of art and absurd twists: a bird is labeled with the names of 20th-century avant-garde movements, a shark is juxtaposed with a rolling pin and a cola bottle.
—Kelly Presutti, ARTnews.com, 10 Jan. 2025
Long Beach as a milieu is defined by its lack of definition — the city is beaches and suburban avenues and mansions and homeless encampments, all populated by citizens who are always pissed at the cops for either doing too much or not doing enough.
—Angie Han, The Hollywood Reporter, 9 Jan. 2025
While the Valley itself is densely populated, Sylmar is a more rural area that was once known for its olive orchards but now for its horse properties.
—Soumya Karlamangla, New York Times, 8 Jan. 2025
See all Example Sentences for populate 
Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 10 Jan. 2025
Taxonomic charts on the walls borrow the aesthetic of science but are populated with terms from the history of art and absurd twists: a bird is labeled with the names of 20th-century avant-garde movements, a shark is juxtaposed with a rolling pin and a cola bottle.
—Kelly Presutti, ARTnews.com, 10 Jan. 2025
Long Beach as a milieu is defined by its lack of definition — the city is beaches and suburban avenues and mansions and homeless encampments, all populated by citizens who are always pissed at the cops for either doing too much or not doing enough.
—Angie Han, The Hollywood Reporter, 9 Jan. 2025
While the Valley itself is densely populated, Sylmar is a more rural area that was once known for its olive orchards but now for its horse properties.
—Soumya Karlamangla, New York Times, 8 Jan. 2025
See all Example Sentences for populate
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Cite this Entry
“Populate.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/populate. Accessed 30 Jan. 2025.
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