transmit

To transmit something is to send it from one place to another, like radio waves carrying your favorite song or a disease spreading through a population. It's about passing something on. Think of a relay race where each runner passes the baton to the next. The word can describe signals, information, energy, or even illness moving from one source to another. A satellite transmits television signals, your car transmits data about its performance, and people can even transmit messages through body language.

Imagine a secret message being passed from person to person across a crowded room—that's transmission in its most basic form. To transmit means to send something—information, energy, or a signal—from one point to another. It implies a journey, the carrying of something across space or through a medium.

The word can also be used for less physical things, such as feelings, ideas, or qualities. You might say someone "transmitted confidence" to the crowd. Today, however, it is most commonly associated with technology and communication. Radio stations transmit signals that your radio receives, and computers transmit data over vast networks. In a medical context, doctors study how diseases are transmitted—whether through the air, water, or physical contact.

The thing being sent is often called a "transmission." You might hear about a "radio transmission" or a "data transmission." The word can also refer to the act of sending itself: "The transmission was clear and uninterrupted." Even in biology, transmission plays a key role—nerve impulses transmit signals throughout your body. Whether it is a radio wave, a virus, a feeling, or an electrical signal, if something is being passed from one place to another, it is being transmitted.