irrigate
verb
ir·ri·gate
ˈir-ə-ˌgāt 
irrigated; irrigating
1
2
: to refresh as if by watering
: to practice irrigation
A tensiometer (soil moisture probe), available at any garden center, helps take the guesswork out of irrigating.—
The Benicia (California) Herald
The Benicia (California) Herald
Examples of irrigate in a Sentence
The surgeon irrigated the wound.
if you get the chemical in your eye, irrigate the eye thoroughly with water
Recent Examples on the Web
Salmonella can be spread via contaminated water errantly used to irrigate crops, according to the CDC.
—Fernando Cervantes Jr., USA TODAY, 8 Jan. 2025
Open your rain barrel spigot and allow the water to drain away or capture the water and use it to irrigate your garden one last time before winter.
—Lauren Landers, Better Homes & Gardens, 4 Dec. 2024
In contrast, Saudi Arabia drew down nearly 80% of its fossil water aquifers between the 1970s and the mid-2010s to irrigate thirsty wheat, corn, and alfalfa fields.
—science.org, 26 Nov. 2024
Fed by our changing snowpack, the mighty Colorado provides water to nearly 50 million Americans, irrigates some of the most important agricultural lands in the world, is over-allocated and stressed by prolonged drought and climate change.
—Bill Ritter Jr., The Denver Post, 3 Nov. 2024
See all Example Sentences for irrigate 
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Fernando Cervantes Jr., USA TODAY, 8 Jan. 2025
Open your rain barrel spigot and allow the water to drain away or capture the water and use it to irrigate your garden one last time before winter.
—Lauren Landers, Better Homes & Gardens, 4 Dec. 2024
In contrast, Saudi Arabia drew down nearly 80% of its fossil water aquifers between the 1970s and the mid-2010s to irrigate thirsty wheat, corn, and alfalfa fields.
—science.org, 26 Nov. 2024
Fed by our changing snowpack, the mighty Colorado provides water to nearly 50 million Americans, irrigates some of the most important agricultural lands in the world, is over-allocated and stressed by prolonged drought and climate change.
—Bill Ritter Jr., The Denver Post, 3 Nov. 2024
See all Example Sentences for irrigate
Dictionary Entries Near irrigate
Cite this Entry
“Irrigate.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/irrigate. Accessed 18 Jan. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
irrigate
verb
ir·ri·gate
ˈir-ə-ˌgāt
irrigated; irrigating
1
: to supply with water by artificial means
irrigate a field
irrigate crops
2
: to flush with a liquid
irrigate a wound
Medical Definition
irrigate
transitive verb
ir·ri·gate
ˈir-ə-ˌgāt
irrigated; irrigating
: to flush (a body part) with a stream of liquid
irrigate the wound with saline to remove debris
the eye was irrigated for 10 minutes following chemical exposure
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