Definition of "percolate" [per•co•late]

• To cause (liquid, for example) to pass through a porous substance or small holes; filter. (verb-transitive)
• To pass or ooze through: Water percolated the sand. (verb-transitive)
• To make (coffee) in a percolator. (verb-transitive)
• To drain or seep through a porous material or filter. (verb-intransitive)
• Informal To become lively or active. (verb-intransitive)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "I'm still processing this 'call to arms' and personally think it needs to percolate from the bottom up not the Government down."
• "After I let the idea percolate for a time, I decided against pursuing that course for something with much less pressure."
• "Cherry let the idea percolate with ABC executives because he knew it was a "pretty risky proposition.""