enfold
Americanverb (used with object)
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to wrap up; envelop.
to enfold someone in a cloak.
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to surround as if with folds.
He wished to enfold her in the warmth of his love. What happened is enfolded in mystery.
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to hug or clasp; embrace.
She enfolded him in her arms.
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to form into a fold or folds.
The material of the skirt had been enfolded to form a loose, graceful drape.
verb
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to cover by enclosing
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to embrace
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to form with or as with folds
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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enfoldsimple
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enfoldssimple
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have enfoldedperfect
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has enfoldedperfect
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am enfoldingprogressive
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are enfoldingprogressive
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is enfoldingprogressive
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have been enfoldingperfect progressive
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has been enfoldingperfect progressive
Past
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enfoldedsimple
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had enfoldedperfect
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was enfoldingprogressive
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were enfoldingprogressive
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had been enfoldingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of enfold
Explanation
To enfold is to wrap, envelop, or surround. You might enfold a baby in a blanket, or enfold a puppy in your arms. When you enfold something, you either wrap it in a cloth or covering, or you mimic this action literally — with your arms — or figuratively. You could say, for example, that as you walk home at sunset, the night begins to enfold your neighborhood. Or you can say that you love when your grandma enfolds you in a hug. The verb enfold combines the prefix en-, "make or put in" with fold.
Vocabulary lists containing enfold
Vocabulary from Readings 3, Unit 1
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Vocabulary from Readings 1, Unit 2
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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.
See Examples For:
George’s cluckingly affectionate aunt wants to enfold Hedda in a tradition that would consign her to the role of wife and mother.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 25, 2026
Little did I know this decision would nearly get me arrested, set me on a path across two coasts, instigate community programming, and enfold kindred spirits near and far.
From Seattle Times ● Jul. 14, 2023
When you see the power of love and people reaching out from their own pain, how that can really surround you and enfold you and help you.
From BBC ● Jan. 14, 2023
Among appetizers, thin crunchy discs of kohlrabi sculpturally enfold an excellent tuna tartare flavored with soy sauce, sesame oil and an inspired purée of beetroot and peanut butter.
From New York Times ● Aug. 23, 2018
They collide, enfold, lose their balance, and slam against a wall, where they stay.
From "Mockingjay" by Suzanne Collins
Cynthia puts her hands out to clasp mine and then enfolds me in her arms.
From BBC ● May 25, 2024
Author and illustrator Oge Mora’s collage art enfolds her characters in warm, inviting colors.
From Washington Post ● Feb. 1, 2019
The album ends with “Here You Are,” a cozy, floating, gradually gathering vamp that enfolds a grim summation: “We’re out of time/Believe the worst.”
From New York Times ● Mar. 14, 2018
In looking squarely at and deeply into things, they respect the actuality that enfolds us all.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 1, 2016
I am careful not to wake this girl who enfolds me.
From "Every Day" by David Levithan
One wishes the film better enfolded Indigenous culture within the narrative: While we do see a few hints, what’s given is not enough.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 16, 2022
That restless motion is enfolded in swelling string-section chords, going nowhere in particular yet not staying still.
From New York Times ● Jul. 15, 2022
He set them down on the tiled floor, opened the door of one, reached inside with a dark towel, and enfolded what was inside.
From Science Magazine ● Jun. 8, 2022
Tucker Carlson burst through the doors of Charlie Palmer Steak, enfolded in an entourage of producers and assistants, cellphone pressed to his ear.
From Seattle Times ● Apr. 30, 2022
But layers of Mist enfolded Hazel, twisting her sense of reality.
From "The House of Hades" by Rick Riordan
Essential to a wilderness is its capacity to bewilder, and though certain of Church’s colleagues in the Hudson River group, notably Worthington Whittredge, brilliantly captured this dense, enfolding quality, Church seldom did.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 1, 2026
At her coronation 70 years ago, beamed around the world in black and white, Elizabeth’s youthful visage and slender form made for a poignant counterpoint to the centuries-old regalia and ritual enfolding her.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 4, 2023
Amid their taut geometries are passages of enfolding softness and effulgent color harmonies — rich reds, pale yellows and blues against his favorite milky lime green.
From Washington Post ● Nov. 27, 2019
He starts out and, in utter, enfolding darkness, he runs.
From The New Yorker ● Oct. 7, 2019
Instead it was the sound of breathing close behind us, and then, miraculously, Marlene’s trunk winding itself around us, enfolding us.
From "An Elephant in the Garden" by Michael Morpurgo
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.
