inhabit

verb

in·​hab·​it in-ˈha-bət 

inhabited; inhabiting; inhabits

transitive verb

1

: to occupy as a place of settled residence or habitat : live in

inhabit a small house

2

: to be present in or occupy in any manner or form

the human beings who inhabit this tale

—Al Newman

intransitive verb

archaic : to have residence in a place : dwell

inhabitable

in-ˈha-bə-tə-bəl 

adjective

inhabiter noun

Examples of inhabit in a Sentence

Several hundred species of birds inhabit the island.

This part of the country is inhabited by native tribes.

There is a romantic quality that inhabits all her paintings.

The novel is inhabited by a cast of eccentric characters.

Recent Examples on the Web

While humpback whales are known to inhabit these waters, incidents involving close encounters with humans are exceedingly rare. —Josh Hammer, Newsweek, 14 Feb. 2025

Things take a turn for the horrifying and comedic when the new lodgers find it is already inhabited by a 400-year-old evil entity. —Samantha Bergeson, IndieWire, 12 Feb. 2025

But spring is a time for hope, and that remains true even for those teams expected to inhabit the lower reaches of the standings. —The Athletic Mlb Staff, The Athletic, 12 Feb. 2025

The prequel has been flashing back to a young Dexter Morgan (played by Patrick Gibson) to provide his origin story on becoming the serial killer inhabited by Hall in present day. —Jackie Strause, The Hollywood Reporter, 11 Feb. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English enhabiten, from Anglo-French & Latin; Anglo-French inhabiter, enhabiter, from Latin inhabitare, from in- + habitare to dwell, frequentative of habēre to have — more at give

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

Kids Definition

inhabit

verb

in·​hab·​it in-ˈhab-ət 

: to live or dwell in

inhabitable

-ət-ə-bəl 

adjective