transpire

[tran-spahyuh r] /trænˈspaɪər/
verb (used without object), transpired, transpiring.
1.
to occur; happen; take place.
2.
to emit or give off waste matter, watery vapor, etc., through the surface, as of the body or of leaves.
3.
to escape, as moisture or odor, through or as if through pores.
4.
to be revealed or become known.
verb (used with object), transpired, transpiring.
5.
to emit or give off (waste matter, watery vapor, an odor, etc.) through the surface, as of the body or of leaves.
Origin
1590-1600; < Middle French transpirer < Medieval Latin trānspīrāre, equivalent to Latin trāns- trans- + spīrāre to breathe
Related forms
transpirable, adjective
transpiratory
[tran-spahyr-uh-tawr-ee, -tohr-ee] /trænˈspaɪr əˌtɔr i, -ˌtoʊr i/ (Show IPA), adjective
untranspired, adjective
untranspiring, adjective
Can be confused
evanesce, evaporate, liquefy, melt, thaw, transpire, vaporize.
Usage note
1. From its earlier literal sense “to escape as vapor” transpire came to mean “to escape from concealment, become known” in the 18th century. Somewhat later, it developed the meaning “to occur, happen,” a sentence such as He was not aware of what had transpired yesterday being taken to mean He was not aware of what had happened yesterday. In spite of two centuries of use in all varieties of speech and writing, this now common meaning is still objected to by some on the grounds that it arose from a misapprehension of the word's true meaning.
Examples from the web for transpire
  • Gamblers can also for the first time wager on the outcomes of events as the events transpire.
  • Often they transpire in hot weather, and everyone's sweating even before the first of too many official welcomes.
  • Obviously, no great change will transpire because of a single speech.
  • Plants also transpire during photosynthesis, the moisture released cause cooling.
  • It surely knows that all eyes are upon it this year to see what might transpire.
  • It's a live sound, though not as live as what will transpire here.
  • But politics is every so much about what might and should and should not transpire.
  • Hooray for being alive when this stuff can transpire.
  • It is where triumph and tragedy transpire in milliseconds.
  • Mellon acknowledges that they could take three to four years to transpire.
British Dictionary definitions for transpire

transpire

/trænˈspaɪə/
verb
1.
(intransitive) to come to light; be known
2.
(intransitive) (informal) to happen or occur
3.
(physiol) to give off or exhale (water or vapour) through the skin, a mucous membrane, etc
4.
(of plants) to lose (water in the form of water vapour), esp through the stomata of the leaves
Derived Forms
transpirable, adjective
transpiration (ˌtrænspəˈreɪʃən) noun
transpiratory, adjective
Usage note
It is often maintained that transpire should not be used to mean happen or occur, as in the event transpired late in the evening, and that the word is properly used to mean become known, as in it transpired later that the thief had been caught. The word is, however, widely used in the former sense, esp in spoken English
Word Origin
C16: from Medieval Latin transpīrāre, from Latin trans- + spīrāre to breathe
Word Origin and History for transpire
v.

1590s, "pass off in the form of a vapor or liquid," from Middle French transpirer (mid-16c.), from Latin trans- "through" (see trans-) + spirare "to breathe" (see spirit). Figurative sense of "leak out, become known" is recorded from 1741, and the erroneous meaning "take place, happen" is almost as old, being first recorded 1755. Related: Transpired; transpiring.