Added 9 October 2026
inoculate
/ɪˈnɒkjuleɪt/ verb
Latin root: inoculātus Wiktionary
verb Definition from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). Pronunciation from Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org. More about inoculate at Wordnik → Where our words come from →
- To introduce an antigenic substance or vaccine into something (e.g. the body) or someone, such as to produce immunity to a specific disease. .mw-parser-output .defdate{font-size:smaller}
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To safeguard or protect something as if by inoculation.
Her upbringing overseas inoculated her against prejudice.
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To add one substance to another.
The culture medium was inoculated with selenium to investigate the rate of uptake.
noun
Origin
First attested in c. 1440; inherited from Middle English inoculaten (“to graft”), from Latin inoculātus, perfect passive participle of inoculō (“to ingraft an eye or bud of one plant into (another), implant”) (see -ate (verb-forming suffix)), from in- (“in”) + oculus (“an eye”) + -ō (verb-forming suffix).
From Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org (CC BY-SA)