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

The ancient Ho-Chunk, who also inhabited modern-day Illinois and elsewhere, then turned to the arrow-straight elm, despite its unyielding, hardwood structure. —Jacqueline Kehoe, Smithsonian Magazine, 26 Dec. 2024

The wellness guru believes that the secret to dieting is feeding your gut microbiome, which is the trillions of bacteria, viruses and fungi that inhabit your intestinal tract and bear huge impact on your weight and health. —Lauren Mechling, Vogue, 25 Dec. 2024

Things come to a head one fateful summer as, amid personal and family tumult, the maturing Griffin begins to inhabit his most important role: himself. —The New Yorker, 23 Dec. 2024

This indicates that there may have been close ties between northeast Scotland and the people who inhabited the Stonehenge region. —Newsweek, 20 Dec. 2024

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