irrigate
verb
ir·ri·gate
ˈir-ə-ˌgāt 
irrigated; irrigating
1
2
: to refresh as if by watering
: to practice irrigation
A tensiometer (soil moisture probe), available at any garden center, helps take the guesswork out of irrigating.—
The Benicia (California) Herald
The Benicia (California) Herald
Examples of irrigate in a Sentence
The surgeon irrigated the wound.
if you get the chemical in your eye, irrigate the eye thoroughly with water
Recent Examples on the Web
The Cuyama Valley north of Santa Barbara is one of the areas of California where groundwater levels have been rapidly dropping, and where water continues to be heavily pumped to irrigate thousands of acres of farmland.
—Ian James, Los Angeles Times, 3 July 2024
Photograph by Adam Ferguson for TIME The evidence, however, is already apparent: microplastics found in the flesh of almost every marine species tested; certain plastic chemicals identified in drinking water; others in the leaves of plants irrigated by polluted streams.
—By Aryn Baker/lautoka, Fiji , TIME, 3 July 2024
Salmonella is usually spread via contaminated water such as that used to irrigate crops, the CDC says, and undercooked and raw foods, like cucumbers.
—Mike Snider, USA TODAY, 19 June 2024
Here's why Mesa Public Schools board member proposes flag display restrictions
Austin, like Phoenix, uses tiered water rates that charge more per gallon as customers move past basic household culinary and hygiene needs into water-intensive demands such as filling a pool or irrigating a lawn.
—Brandon Loomis, The Arizona Republic, 23 Feb. 2024
See all Example Sentences for irrigate 
Ian James, Los Angeles Times, 3 July 2024
Photograph by Adam Ferguson for TIME The evidence, however, is already apparent: microplastics found in the flesh of almost every marine species tested; certain plastic chemicals identified in drinking water; others in the leaves of plants irrigated by polluted streams.
—By Aryn Baker/lautoka, Fiji , TIME, 3 July 2024
Salmonella is usually spread via contaminated water such as that used to irrigate crops, the CDC says, and undercooked and raw foods, like cucumbers.
—Mike Snider, USA TODAY, 19 June 2024
Here's why Mesa Public Schools board member proposes flag display restrictions
Austin, like Phoenix, uses tiered water rates that charge more per gallon as customers move past basic household culinary and hygiene needs into water-intensive demands such as filling a pool or irrigating a lawn.
—Brandon Loomis, The Arizona Republic, 23 Feb. 2024
See all Example Sentences for irrigate
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'irrigate.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near irrigate
Cite this Entry
“Irrigate.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/irrigate. Accessed 7 Jul. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
irrigate
verb
ir·ri·gate
ˈir-ə-ˌgāt
irrigated; irrigating
1
: to supply with water by artificial means
irrigate a field
irrigate crops
2
: to flush with a liquid
irrigate a wound
Medical Definition
irrigate
transitive verb
ir·ri·gate
ˈir-ə-ˌgāt
irrigated; irrigating
: to flush (a body part) with a stream of liquid
irrigate the wound with saline to remove debris
the eye was irrigated for 10 minutes following chemical exposure
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