seep
part of speech
verb (seep, seeps, seeped, seeping)
meaning for a pupil
1) When a liquid seeps, it flows slowly through small holes or cracks, a little at a time. tree →
2) When a feeling or an idea seeps in, it slowly spreads into someone's mind. tree →
3) Light, cold or smell can seep in through a gap, coming in slowly. tree →
sense in the lessons
In science, water seeps through soil, sand and rock; this is how rain gets underground and how wells fill. In everyday life, water seeps under a door in a storm or ink seeps through paper. Phrases: «seep in», «seep through», «seep out», «seep into».
examples
- Rainwater seeps into the ground and becomes groundwater. tree →
- Water seeped under the door during the storm. tree →
- The juice seeped through the paper bag. tree →
- Cold air seeped in through the cracked window. tree →
- Ink seeped through the page and spoiled the next one. tree →
- Slowly the truth seeped into his mind: he had lost the key. tree →
- Oil seeped out of the old car onto the driveway. tree →
- Sand lets water seep through faster than clay does. tree →
note
Regular verb: past «seeped». Seep is slow and gentle; a gush or a pour is fast. Do not confuse seep with «sweep» (use a broom) or «steep» (very sloping). In science, water seeps faster through sand than clay because sand has bigger gaps.
Trees and pragmatics
Every meaning and example of «seep» parsed by Mova, each sentence with its dependency tree and frames.