Meanings
present singular third person pullulates · participle present pullulating · participle past pullulated · past pullulated
- To multiply rapidly.
- To germinate.
- To teem with; to be filled (with).
I must say the whole of Oxford has become most peculiar suddenly. Last night it was pullulating with women.
1945, Evelyn Waugh, chapter 1, in Brideshead Revisited […], London: Chapman & Hall, published 1952, →OCLC, book 1 (Et in Arcadia Ego), page 22
Synonyms & antonyms
verbproduce buds, branches, or germinate
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
- Latinpullulātus
- Englishpullulate
Borrowed from Latin pullulātus, perfect passive participle of pullulō (“sprout forth”), from pullulus (“a young animal, a sprout”), diminutive of pullus.
More words from Latin
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Bulgarian гъмжа, размножавам се
- гъмжа (gămža)to multiply rapidly
- размножавам се (razmnožavam se)to multiply rapidly
- покарвам (pokarvam)to germinate
- пониквам (ponikvam)to germinate
- гъмжа (gămža)to teem; to be filled (with)
Dutch kiemen, zich ontwikkelen
- kiemento germinate
- zich ontwikkelento germinate
- krioelento teem; to be filled (with)
German keimen, sprießen
- keimento germinate
- sprießento germinate
Polish mnożyć się, plenić się
- mnożyć sięto multiply rapidly
- plenić sięto multiply rapidly
- kiełkowaćto germinate
- zakiełkowaćto germinate
Russian размножаться, прорастать
- размножаться (razmnožatʹsja)to multiply rapidly
- прорастать (prorastatʹ)to germinate
- кишеть (kišetʹ)to teem; to be filled (with)
Cite this entry
pullulate. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/pullulate
“pullulate.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/pullulate. Accessed November 2, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “pullulate,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/pullulate.
Source: pullulate on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.