salivate
C1Neutral to formal; common in both everyday and technical contexts.
Definition
Meaning
To produce saliva, especially in response to the sight or smell of food.
To show eager anticipation or desire, often in a metaphorical sense.
Linguistics
Semantic Notes
Can be used both literally (physiological response) and figuratively (emotional eagerness).
Dialectal Variation
British vs American Usage
Differences
No significant differences in meaning or usage.
Connotations
Slight preference for literal use in British English and metaphorical in American English, but not strongly marked.
Frequency
Equally common in both varieties.
Vocabulary
Collocations
Grammar
Valency Patterns
intransitivesalivate over somethingsalivate at somethingVocabulary
Synonyms
Strong
Neutral
Weak
Vocabulary
Antonyms
Phrases
Idioms & Phrases
- “salivate at the thought”
Usage
Context Usage
Business
Used metaphorically to describe eagerness for a deal or opportunity, e.g., 'Investors salivate over new tech startups.'
Academic
Used in biology or psychology to describe physiological responses, e.g., 'The study measured how subjects salivate under stress.'
Everyday
Common when talking about food or anticipation, e.g., 'I salivate every time I pass the bakery.'
Technical
In medical contexts, referring to saliva production, e.g., 'The drug can cause patients to salivate excessively.'
Examples
By Part of Speech
verb
British English
- The dog began to salivate when it saw the bone.
- She could not help but salivate at the aroma of the roast.
American English
- The dog started to salivate at the sight of the bone.
- He tends to salivate over fancy cars.
Examples
By CEFR Level
- I salivate when I smell pizza.
- Babies often salivate when teething.
- The thought of vacation makes me salivate.
- He salivated over the delicious dessert.
- Investors salivate over the prospect of high returns.
- The advertisement made everyone salivate with anticipation.
- The physiological response to salivate is triggered by the parasympathetic nervous system.
- Critics salivate at the chance to review such controversial works.
Learning
Memory Aids
Mnemonic
Think of 'saliva' + 'ate' – when you ate, you salivate.
Conceptual Metaphor
Desire is hunger, eagerness is salivation.
Watch out
Common Pitfalls
Translation Traps (for Russian speakers)
- Might confuse with 'слюнявить' which is informal or translate too literally as 'производить слюну'.
- Avoid using 'саливаться' as it is not standard.
Common Mistakes
- Using 'salivate' transitively, e.g., 'He salivated the food' instead of 'He salivated over the food'.
- Confusing with 'slobber' which implies messiness.
Practice
Quiz
What does 'salivate' mean in a figurative sense?
FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions
No, it can be used for animals as well, as it describes a physiological response.
No, it is typically intransitive and used with prepositions like 'over' or 'at', e.g., 'salivate over something'.
'Salivate' is more formal and can be used figuratively, while 'drool' is more informal and often refers to saliva escaping the mouth, usually in a literal sense.
In American English, it is pronounced as /ˈsæləveɪt/, with a schwa sound in the second syllable.
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