Definition of "permeate" [per•me•ate]

• To spread or flow throughout; pervade: "Our thinking is permeated by our historical myths” ( Freeman J. Dyson). See Synonyms at charge. (verb-transitive)
• To pass through the openings or interstices of: liquid permeating a membrane. (verb-transitive)
• To spread through or penetrate something. (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.

• "The permeate is processed to remove the lactose, which is used to create ethanol."
• "Quoting experts who have clear political biases, speculating about how one's theology would influence their public policy and poor use of important labels permeate the coverage of Palin."
• "Metaphors permeate our emotional lives so deeply that "permeate" might be the wrong word; from one perspective, they're what those lives consist of, and bad ones land us in trouble."