Standard Lemma guide

perfuse

verb · 4 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • rhymes with -uːz
  • Southern-England: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.

1

verb

Meaning 1

To permeate or suffuse something, especially with a liquid or with light.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: transitive

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

verb

Meaning 2

To force a fluid to flow over or through something, especially through an organ of the body.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: transitive

Examples

  • 2001, Alan B. R. Thomson, Gary Wild, Lipid Absorption and the Unstirred layers, Charles M. Mansbach II, Patrick Tso, Arnis Kuksis (editors), Intestinal Lipid Metabolism, Kluwer Academic / Plenum Publishers, page 140, The change in the ratio of the uptake of xylose and urea could not be explained just by an alteration in UWL resistance or by a change in the laminar flow properties of the perfused fluid.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

3

verb

Meaning 3

cause to spread or flush or flood through, over, or across

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • The sky was suffused with a warm pink color

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: suffuse

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: flush

4

verb

Meaning 4

force a fluid through (a body part or tissue)

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • perfuse a liver with a salt solution

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: flush

History

Etymology

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *per-der. Proto-Italic *peri- Latin per- Proto-Indo-European *ǵhew- Proto-Indo-European *ǵhewd- Proto-Indo-European *-né-? Proto-Indo-European *ǵhunédti ~ ǵhundénti Proto-Italic *hundō Latin fundō Latin perfundō Latin perfūsusder. English perfuse From 1520s, from Latin perfusus, past participle of perfundo (“to pour over, besprinkle”) from per- + fundo (“to pour”) (from nasalised form of PIE root *gheu- ("to pour")); compare diffuse, suffuse.

Across languages

Translations

11 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Bulgarian: обливам (oblivam) — to permeate or suffuse
  • Czech: proplachovat — to permeate or suffuse
  • Czech: prolévat — to permeate or suffuse
  • Czech: prosvítat — to permeate or suffuse
  • Finnish: virrata läpi — to permeate or suffuse
  • German: durchströmen — to permeate or suffuse
  • German: perfundieren — to permeate or suffuse
  • Czech: proplachovat — to force a fluid through an organ
  • Czech: prokrvovat — to force a fluid through an organ
  • Czech: perfundovat — to force a fluid through an organ
  • Czech: prolévat — to force a fluid through an organ