undulate

English

Etymology 1

First attested in 1664; borrowed from New Latin undulātus, the perfect passive participle of undulō (see -ate (verb-forming suffix)), from an unattested *undula (“small wave”), diminutive of Latin unda (“wave”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈʌndjəleɪt/, /ˈʌndjʊleɪt/, /ˈʌnd͡ʒəleɪt/, /ˈʌnd͡ʒʊleɪt/, /ˈʌndəleɪt/

• Audio (Southern England):

  (file)

Verb

undulate (third-person singular simple present undulates, present participle undulating, simple past and past participle undulated)

1. (transitive) To cause to move in a wavelike motion.
   • 1669, William Holder, Elements of Speech: An Essay of Inquiry into the Natural Production of Letters: […], London: […] T. N[ewcomb] for J[ohn] Martyn printer to the R[oyal] Society, […], →OCLC:

     Breath vocalized, i.e., vibrated and undulated.

2. (transitive) To cause to resemble a wave.
3. (intransitive) To move in wavelike motions.

   His tongue undulated.

   • 1865, Walt Whitman, “When Lilacs Last in the Dooryard Bloom’d”, in Sequel to Drum-Taps: When Lilacs Last in the Dooryard Bloom’d and other poems:

     Come lovely and soothing death, / Undulate round the world, serenely arriving, arriving, / In the day, in the night, to all, to each, / Sooner or later delicate death.

4. (intransitive) To appear wavelike.

Derived terms

• circumundulate
• undulately
• undulation
• undulative
• undulator
• undulatory

Translations

transitive: cause to move in a wave

• Bulgarian: вълнувам (bg) (vălnuvam)
• Catalan: ondular (ca), ondar (ca)
• Danish: ondulere (da), svinger
• Finnish: värisyttää (fi), saada aaltoilemaan
• German: wogen (de), schwingen (de), wellenförmig bewegen
• Greek: κυματίζω (el) (kymatízo)
• Korean: 흔들다 (ko) (heundeulda)
• Portuguese: ondular (pt), ondear
• Russian: ряби́ть (ru) (rjabítʹ)
• Slovene: vzvalovati
• Spanish: ondear (es)
• Swedish: ^{(please verify)} försätta något i vågrörelse, ^{(please verify)} komma något att bölja
• Turkish: dalgalandırmak (tr)

  Ottoman Turkish: طالغه‌لانمق (dalgalanmak)

transitive: cause to resemble a wave

• Bulgarian: правя вълнообразен (pravja vălnoobrazen)
• Catalan: ondar (ca)
• Finnish: aallottaa (fi)
• German: wellen (de), ondulieren (de)
• Hungarian: hullámosít (hu), ondolál (hu)
• Portuguese: ondular (pt)
• Russian: ряби́ть (ru) (rjabítʹ)

intransitive: move in wavelike motions

• Bulgarian: вълнувам се (vălnuvam se)
• Catalan: onejar (ca), ondular (ca)
• Finnish: aaltoilla (fi)
• French: onduler (fr), ondoyer (fr)
• German: wellen (de), wallen (de), wogen (de), undulieren, wiegen (de), sich wellenförmig bewegen
• Greek: κυμαίνομαι (el) (kymaínomai)
• Hungarian: hullámzik (hu)
• Korean: 흔들리다 (ko) (heundeullida) (rattle, shake, vibrate, swing, be shaky) (intransitive)
• Māori: māpuna, ngapu, pūwakawaka
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: bølge (no)

• Polish: falować (pl) impf
• Portuguese: ondular (pt), ondear
• Russian: ряби́ть (ru) (rjabítʹ)
• Spanish: ondear (es), ondular (es)
• Swedish: bölja (sv), ^{(please verify)} gå i vågor, ^{(please verify)} röra sig i vågor
• Turkish: dalgalanmak (tr)

  Ottoman Turkish: طالغه‌لانمق (dalgalanmak)

intransitive: resemble a wave

• Bulgarian: вълнообразен съм (vălnoobrazen săm)
• Finnish: kiemurrella (fi)
• German: schlängeln (de)

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

Translations to be checked

• Dutch: ^{(please verify)} golven (nl)
• Korean: ^{(please verify)} 흔들거리다 (ko) (heundeul-georida) (intransitive)

See also

• oscillate

Etymology 2

Borrowed from Late Latin undulātus (“undulated”), see -ate (adjective-forming suffix).

Pronunciation

• (non-merged vowel) IPA^(key): /ˈʌndjəlɪt/, /ˈʌndjʊlɪt/, /ˈʌnd͡ʒəlɪt/, /ˈʌnd͡ʒʊlɪt/, /ˈʌndəlɪt/
• (merged vowel) IPA^(key): /ˈʌndjələt/, /ˈʌnd͡ʒələt/, /ˈʌndələt/

• Audio (Southern England); /ˈʌnd͡ʒələt/:

  (file)

Adjective

Flowers with undulate petal margins

undulate (comparative more undulate, superlative most undulate)

1. Wavy in appearance or form.
2. Changing the pitch and volume of one's voice.
3. (botany, of a margin) sinuous, winding up and down.

Translations

wavy in appearance or form

• Bulgarian: вълнообразен (bg) (vălnoobrazen)
• Estonian: lainetav (et) sg
• Greek: κυματώδης (el) m or f (kymatódis), κυματοειδής (el) m or f (kymatoeidís), κυματιστός (el) m (kymatistós)
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: bølget

• Polish: falisty (pl) m, pofałdowany m
• Portuguese: ondulado (pt)
• Russian: волни́стый (ru) (volnístyj), волнообра́зный (ru) (volnoobráznyj)
• Spanish: ondulado (es)

changing one's voice

• Polish: falujący m
• Turkish: dalgalanma (tr)

Latin

Adjective

undulāte

1. vocative masculine singular of undulātus