proliferate
verb
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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
Examples of proliferate in a Sentence
Adam Gopnik, The New Yorker, 6 July 2024
As tax havens have proliferated, public outrage over the wealthiest corporations skirting their tax payments has grown.
—Joseph E. Stiglitz, Foreign Affairs, 3 July 2024
While Mickey and Goofy were created by men and aimed at everyone, a hyper-cute culture proliferated in Japan specifically catering to young females.
—Charlie Campbell, TIME, 27 June 2024
In Belgium, Brussels has become a hub for drugs coming from Antwerp, and shootings between rival gangs have proliferated.
—The Week Uk, theweek, 22 June 2024
See all Example Sentences for proliferate 
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Dictionary Entries Near proliferate
Cite this Entry
“Proliferate.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/proliferate. Accessed 14 Jul. 2024.
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proliferate
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proliferate
verb
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