Make Your Point > Archived Issues > PERMEATE

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connect today's word to others: Here's what I've heard. Just inside Disney's Magic Kingdom, on Main Street, USA, the mouthwatering scent of chocolate chip cookies that permeates the air doesn't come from a bakery but from chemicals forced into the air through a device called an Air Smellitizer. ("Smellitizer" is probably the ugliest word ever, right?) That cookie smell, though: yum. It's a delicious (if deceptive) example of something that permeates: something that spreads all throughout a place. We caught a glimpse of permeate once before, when we were studying the word impermeable. Could you give an example of one thing that's impermeable to a second thing? Next, let's recall three synonyms of permeate: 1. To i___e something is to deeply influence it or to completely fill it: you i___e your children with morals, you i___e a friend with hope, you i___e an object with meaning. 2. When things d____se, they spread out or scatter widely around. (Were you thinking of disperse? Sure, but how about another word?) And something d____se is either spread out or scattered widely around OR it uses way too many words (as if the words were poured all across a wide area). 3. When a liquid p_______es, it trickles through or passes through another substance. You might like to prepare your coffee this way. More generally, when something p_______es, it gradually spreads all throughout somewhere. (To reveal any word with blanks, give it a click.) make your point with... "PERMEATE" To permeate something is to soak into it or to spread all the way through it. Pronunciation: PER me ate Part of speech: Verb. Usually the transitive kind. (Like "eat," "try," and "want," all transitive verbs do something to an object. You eat a banana, try a game, and want a new phone. Likewise, something permeates something else.) Other forms: permeated, permeating; permeative; permeation; permeable, permeability; impermeable, impermiably, impermeability How to use it: "Permeate" can be positive or negative: "The aroma permeated the garden;" "The stench permeated the locker room." That's the most literal way to use "permeate:" to talk about smells or gases that permeate areas, rooms, buildings, the atmosphere, the air in a particular place, etc. But I'll focus mostly on figurative usage. Talk about one thing (like a thought, a trend, a suspicion, an attitude, or a sense of peace) that permeates another thing, like    a body;    a group of people;    a school or workplace;    a population or nation;    society as a whole;    someone's thoughts, dreams, or memories;    every aspect of someone's life;    a culture or subculture;    the Internet or social media;    or a work of art, film, or literature. examples: The images from the poem have permeated my mind. Now I hear its lines when I see coffee spoons, red or brown seaweed, or arms wrapped around a shawl. In my environmental science class, we took a field trip to learn about wastewater reclamation. The odor permeating the facility made us gag... and made us respect the people who worked there. study it now: Look away from the screen to explain the definition in your own words. You’ll know you understand what "permeate" means when you can explain it without saying "spread" or "invade." try it out: Fill in the blanks: "_____ (hasn't or haven't) just recently permeated society; (it has, or they have) actually been around since _____." Example: "Chain letters haven't just recently permeated society; they may have actually been around since the 18th century." before you review: Spend at least 20 seconds occupying your mind with the game below. Then try the review questions. Don’t go straight to the review now—let your working memory empty out first. This month, we're playing "Game of Games!" Guess the one-word title of each board game, using your knowledge of vocabulary. From our previous issue:  Designed by Donald X. Vaccarino, this game has players racing to build evil gadgets for world domination. The title means "absolutely wicked, vicious, and evil." It's pictured below, with the title blurred out. What game is this? Answer: Nefarious. Check out the game here and the word here. Try this today:  Designed by Oliver Kiley, this game has players building empires, aiming to take control of the entire galaxy. The title means "having power, control, and dominance over all other things, groups, or ideas." It's pictured below, with the title blurred out. What game is this? review today's word: 1. A close opposite of PERMEATE is A. FORESHORTEN. B. CONTRACT. C. DISPERSE. 2. Dan's oddball humor has permeated _____. A. his parents; they're under the impression that he's deeply troubled or painfully awkward B. his depression, which may have crippled someone with a darker worldview C. the staff, who try to top each other with variations on his practical jokes Answers are below. a final word: Make Your Point is crafted with love and brought to you each weekday morning by Liesl Johnson, a reading and writing tutor on a mission to explore, illuminate, and celebrate words. From Liesl's blog:    36 ways to study words.    Why we forget words, & how to remember them.    How to use sophisticated words without being awkward. To be a sponsor and include your ad in an issue, please contact me at Liesl@HiloTutor.com. Disclaimer: When I write definitions, I use plain language and stick to the words' common, useful applications. If you're interested in authoritative and multiple definitions of words, I encourage you to check a dictionary. Also, because I'm American, I stick to American English when I share words' meanings, usage, and pronunciations; these elements sometimes vary across world Englishes. Answers to review questions: 1. B 2. C