inculcate

Definition

To teach by repeated instruction.

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin inculcātus, perfect passive participle of inculcō (“impress upon, force upon”) (see -ate (verb-forming suffix) and -ate (adjective-forming suffix)), from in- (“in”) + calcō (“tread upon, trample”), from calx (“heel”). Participial usage of the adjective up until Early Modern English.

Example Sentences

• "Those impious Pigs, Who, by frequent squeaks, have dared impugn The settled Swellfoot system, or to make Irreverent mockery of the genuflexions Inculcated by the arch-priest, have been whipt Into a loyal and an orthodox whine."
• "she had a perfect Parisian accent, was musical—all French women sing—had a great deal of tournure, the value of which she was always inculcating on her pupils: "La Grace plus belle que la beauté," was invariably the quotation when putting on her shawl; and, it must be confessed, that never did five English girls put on shawls to such perfection."
• "But wordless conditioning […] cannot inculcate the more complex courses of behaviour."