endue
Americanverb (used with object)
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to invest or endow with some gift, quality, or faculty.
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to put on; assume.
Hamlet endued the character of a madman.
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to clothe.
verb
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(usually foll by with) to invest or provide, as with some quality or trait
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rare (foll by with) to clothe or dress (in)
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of endue
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English endewen “to induct, initiate,” from Anglo-French, Old French enduire, from Latin indūcere “to lead in, cover, induce”; see induce
Explanation
You probably hope that your years of ballet classes will endue you with the ability to dance like Baryshnikov. In other words, you're dreaming that all of those arabesques and pirouettes will provide you with the dancing talent you wish for. Endue is a fancy literary term that shows up most often in formal writing, but you could impress someone by using it to mean "endow," "invest," or "empower." Less often, endue is used to mean "to put clothes on," or "dress," which makes sense when you know that endue comes from the Latin word induere, or "to put on."
Vocabulary lists containing endue
The Vocabulary.com Top 1000
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The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark
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Twelfth Night
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
He invoked them to endue his daughter with more than mortal beauty, that she might inflame the soul of princes, and sit upon their throne.
From Wilson's Tales of the Borders and of Scotland, Volume VI by Leighton, Alexander
Nothing was wanting to endue that drive with every illusion of a dream.
From Linda Lee, Incorporated A Novel by Vance, Louis Joseph
Nourish me, and endue me, I am only of you, I am your issue.
From Look! We Have Come Through! by Lawrence, D. H. (David Herbert)
O immortal God, endue me With the gifts for which I ask.
From Morning and Evening Prayers for All Days of the Week Together With Confessional, Communion, and Other Prayers and Hymns for Mornings and Evenings, and Other Occasions by Habermann, John
"Give them," said the son of Houadir, "to me, and I will endue them with stronger virtues, and thou shalt by them have power also over others, as well as to defend thyself."
From Eastern Tales by Many Story Tellers by Valentine, L. (Laura)
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
