devour
[ dih-vou-uh r, -vou-er ]
/ dɪˈvaʊ ər, -ˈvaʊ ər /
verb (used with object)
to swallow or eat up hungrily, voraciously, or ravenously.
to consume destructively, recklessly, or wantonly: Fire devoured the old museum.
to engulf or swallow up.
to take in greedily with the senses or intellect: to devour the works of Freud.
to absorb or engross wholly: a mind devoured by fears.
Nearby words
Origin of devour
1275–1325; Middle English devouren < Anglo-French, Old French devourer < Latin dēvorāre to swallow down, equivalent to dē- de- + vorāre to eat up
Related forms
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019
Examples from the Web for devour
British Dictionary definitions for devour
devour
/ (dɪˈvaʊə) /
verb (tr)
to swallow or eat up greedily or voraciously
to waste or destroy; consumethe flames devoured the curtains
to consume greedily or avidly with the senses or mindhe devoured the manuscripts
to engulf or absorbthe flood devoured the land
Derived Forms
devourer, noundevouring, adjectivedevouringly, adverbWord Origin for devour
C14: from Old French devourer, from Latin dēvorāre to gulp down, from de- + vorāre to consume greedily; see voracious
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