seep
Americanverb (used without object)
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to pass, flow, or ooze gradually through a porous substance.
Water seeps through cracks in the wall.
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(of ideas, methods, etc.) to enter or be introduced at a slow pace.
The new ideas finally seeped down to the lower echelons.
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to become diffused; permeate.
Fog seeped through the trees, obliterating everything.
verb (used with object)
noun
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moisture that seeps out; seepage.
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a small spring, pool, or other place where liquid from the ground has oozed to the surface of the earth.
verb
noun
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a small spring or place where water, oil, etc, has oozed through the ground
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another word for seepage
Etymology
Origin of seep
1780–90; perhaps variant of dial. sipe, itself perhaps continuing Old English sīpian (cognate with Middle Low German sīpen )
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
On early spring nights in rural Hydesville, New York, the chill dampness from Mud Creek seeped into a person’s bones should a foot, or a finger, escape thick layers of homemade quilts.
From Literature
All my hope was slowly seeping out of me.
From Literature
The lull in action seeped into the stands.
From BBC
Frustration seeps from most conversations in east Durham.
From BBC
Tiny cracks in the road surface – usually caused by traffic – allow water to seep in.
From BBC
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
