osculate

O1S1C3U1L1A1T1E1
UK/ˈɒskjʊˌleɪt/UK/ˈɒskjəˌleɪt/US/ˈɑskjəˌleɪt/US/ˈɑskjuˌleɪt/

verb

To kiss.

Similar
osculatorysnogkissbuss
OriginLatin ōsculātus →
Scrabble 10
Ask AI about this wordChatGPTClaudePerplexityGoogle AIGrok

Meanings

osculate1

verbosculate (third-person singular simple present osculates, present participle osculating, simple past and past participle osculated)

present singular third person osculates · participle present osculating · participle past osculated · past osculated

  1. ambitransitiveTo kiss.

    And in the Olmsted Hotel in Cleveland he surprised a porter and a maid lasciviously osculating in a stairwell.

    2001, Jonathan Franzen, The Corrections
  2. mathematicsTo touch so as to have the same tangent and curvature at the point of contact.
  3. intransitiveTo make contact.
  4. VedicarithmeticTo perform osculation.
  5. To form a connecting link between two genera.

osculate2

adjectiveosculate (not comparable)
  1. not comparableRelating to kissing.

    Synonyms: osculatory

Synonyms & antonyms

adjectiveRelating to kissing.

Similar
osculatory

More synonyms by meaning

verbtouch with the lips or press the lips (against someone's mouth or other body part) as an expression of love, greeting, etc.

Similar
snogkissbuss
Broader
touch
Also see
busskissmake outnecksnog

Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.

Origin

osculate · verb

  1. Latinōsculātus
  2. Englishosculate

Borrowed from Latin ōsculātus, perfect active participle of ōsculor (“to kiss”) (see -ate (verb-forming suffix)), from ōsculum (“a kiss”) + -or (verbal suffix), from ōs (“mouth”) + -culum (diminutive suffix). See also oscillate.

More words from Latin

Full word history & related roots →

osculate · adjective

  1. Latinōsculātus
  2. Englishosculate

From Latin ōsculātus.

More words from Latin

Full word history & related roots →

Rhymes & wordplay

Anagrams

lacteousscaleout
Cite this entry
APA

osculate. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/osculate

MLA

“osculate.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/osculate. Accessed November 2, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “osculate,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/osculate.

Source: osculate on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.