Immigrate vs. Migrate — What's the Difference?

Immigrate and Migrate are both verbs that describe the act of moving from one location to another. However, Immigrate is more specific, often referring to moving across international borders with the intent of permanent residency. Migrate is a broader term, encompassing not only international moves but also moves within a country, and it can be either temporary or permanent.

When someone immigrates, they generally complete legal processes to become a resident of a new country. Immigration suggests a permanency, often involving an extensive legal process that culminates in gaining citizenship or permanent residency status. In contrast, migrating doesn't necessarily entail legal or permanent residency considerations and can be as simple as moving from one state to another within the United States.

In terms of word usage, Immigrate is usually followed by the preposition "to" as in "immigrate to the United States," while Migrate can be followed by either "to" or "from," as in "migrate to the South" or "migrate from the North." This reflects the more focused destination-specific aspect of immigrating as compared to the more flexible and broader concept of migrating.

Grammatically speaking, both Immigrate and Migrate are transitive and intransitive verbs. That is, they can either take an object ("They immigrated to Canada.") or not take an object ("Birds migrate annually."). However, Immigrate is often seen in contexts that include formal objects like "country" or "city," whereas Migrate may be used in broader contexts that might even include non-human subjects like "birds" or "whales."