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View synonyms for consume

consume

[ kuhn-soom ]

verb (used with object)

, con·sumed, con·sum·ing.
  1. to destroy or expend by use; use up.

    Synonyms: deplete, exhaust

  2. to eat or drink up; devour.
  3. to destroy, as by decomposition or burning:

    Fire consumed the forest.

  4. to spend (money, time, etc.) wastefully.

    Synonyms: dissipate, squander

  5. to absorb; engross:

    consumed with curiosity.



verb (used without object)

, con·sumed, con·sum·ing.
  1. to undergo destruction; waste away.
  2. to use or use up consumer goods.

consume

/ kənˈsjuːm /

verb

  1. tr to eat or drink
  2. tr; often passive to engross or obsess
  3. tr to use up; expend

    my car consumes little oil

  4. to destroy or be destroyed by burning, decomposition, etc

    fire consumed the forest

  5. tr to waste or squander

    the time consumed on that project was excessive

  6. passive to waste away
“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012


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Derived Forms

  • conˈsumingly, adverb
  • conˈsuming, adjective
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Other Words From

  • half-con·sumed adjective
  • over·con·sume verb overconsumed overconsuming
  • precon·sume verb (used with object) preconsumed preconsuming
  • uncon·sumed adjective
  • under·con·sume verb (used with object) underconsumed underconsuming
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Word History and Origins

Origin of consume1

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English, from Middle French consumer, from Latin consūmere, from con- con- + sūmere “to take up” (equivalent to subs-, variant of sub- sub- + emere “to take, buy”; emptor ( def ) )
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Word History and Origins

Origin of consume1

C14: from Latin consūmere to devour, from com- (intensive) + sūmere to take up, from emere to take, purchase
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Example Sentences

When it comes to beloved products, we are “very good at rationalizing in order to reduce this discomfort while still consuming the product we want to consume,” John said.

He said he is not a proponent of double masking because it consumes more masks and can also lead to more air leakage.

Newsletters support the Times’ subscription-driven business by getting readers into the habit of consuming its content everyday via The Morning.

From Digiday

Intent-signaling behaviors — observable as users search, click, consume and repeat — are the lifeblood of the digital advertising ecosystem and something publishers must honor.

From Digiday

If the cost of consuming water wasn’t high enough in San Diego, consider the cost of getting rid of it.

The French still consume more than half of the Champagne produced.

And as technology adapts to reflect the ways we consume media, so too is the family adapting to technology.

This is just the way we consume TV now: our favorite shows, whenever we want them, wherever we want them.

And new innovations continue to make wireless, on-demand viewing the new way our families consume TV.

You consume a nutritionally unbalanced diet because of concerns about “food purity.”

And it shall devour the mountains, and burn the wilderness, and consume all that is green as with fire.

Aristide stood gossiping until the Mayor invited him to take a place at the table and consume liquid refreshment.

She thought the idol would consume them, for bachelor cooking was never intended for bachelor invalids.

The fire also being sent from above to consume mountains, and woods, doth as it is commanded.

I said therefore that I would pour out my indignation upon them in the desert, and would consume them.

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