Propagated

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. To have distributed information, characteristics, or entities widely among various groups To have supported the reproduction or proliferation of life forms or ideas To have enhanced the significance or reach of a specific topic or phenomenon in a community
2. To have caused something to spread across a large area or among many people ; to have caused new life forms or organisms to grow or multiply ; to have actively encouraged or advanced a movement or concept
3. Having distributed or passed along information, traits, or items broadly ; having reproduced through natural or artificial means ; having endorsed or championed an idea to increase its influence

Etymology: The verb "propagated" is simply the past tense of "propagate," so its story is really the story of its root. The Latin "propagare" meant to fasten layers of a plant into the ground so that they would take root and grow into new plants, a gardening term rooted in the idea of extending a shoot outward. Its perfect passive participle "propagatus" gave English the form "propagate," first recorded in 1535, which kept the horticultural sense for a while before spreading to other meanings. The verb's modern uses grew from that botanical picture. Gardeners propagate plants by cuttings, layering or seeds, and the same image of a living thing spreading from one point to many carried over to ideas, news, and beliefs. The Latin word is built from "pro-," meaning forward, and "pagare," to fix or fasten, so the notion of planting something so it extends forward remains visible in every sense.

Synonyms: spread, transmitted, disseminated, distributed, extended

Antonyms: contained, restricted, limited, stopped, halted