Gravitate Meaning
/ˈɡɹævɪteɪt/Definition, CEFR level C1, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.
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Definition
verbTo move under the force of gravity.
verbTo tend or drift towards someone or something, as though being pulled by gravity.
Sentence Examples
The wishes and ideas of a composer gravitate around a common point.
I tend to gravitate towards morbid topics.
The dogs don't naturally gravitate toward tall people.
CEFR Practice Quiz
During the party, people naturally ____ toward the kitchen where the food was.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
Students often ____ towards professors who are known for being both engaging and fair in their grading.
Word Origin & History
Borrowed from New Latin gravitāt-, past participial stem of gravitō.
Literary Quotations & Historical Citations
"Theſe, who have nature's ſteps with care purſued,
That matter is with active force endued,
That all its parts magnetic power exert,
And to each other gravitate, aſſert."
— 1712, Sir Richard Blackmore, Creation; a philosophical poem in seven books, book II:
"The natural price, therefore, is, as it were, the central price, to which the prices of all commodities are continually gravitating."
— 1776, Adam Smith, Wealth of Nations:
"As the presence of any considerable number of priests on an ocean steamer is supposed to bring rough weather, so the addition of a few hundred parsons to the population of Edinburgh is believed to induce rain,—or perhaps I should say, more rain."
— 1898, Kate Douglas Wiggin, chapter 8, in Penelope’s Progress […], Boston, Mass.; New York, N.Y.: Houghton, Mifflin and Company […], →OCLC:
"Responsibilities gravitate to the person who can shoulder them."
— 1923, Elbert Hubbard, J.B. Runs Things:
"A considerable amount of new rolling stock has been built for the main line services during recent years, and the older stock has gravitated to the secondary and branch lines."
— 1940 May, “The Irish Railways Today”, in Railway Magazine, page 296:
Explore More C1 Vocabulary Words
CEFR Practice Quiz
During the party, people naturally ____ toward the kitchen where the food was.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
Students often ____ towards professors who are known for being both engaging and fair in their grading.