engulf

[ en-guhlf ]

/ ɛnˈgʌlf /

verb (used with object)

to swallow up in or as in a gulf; submerge: The overflowing river has engulfed many small towns along its banks.

to plunge or immerse, as into a gulf: He engulfed himself in his studies.

Words nearby engulf

engraving, engross, engrossed bill, engrossing, engrossment, engulf, enhalo, enhance, enhanced oil recovery, enhanced radiation weapon, enhancer

Also ingulf.

Origin of engulf

First recorded in 1545–55; en-¹ + gulf

SYNONYMS FOR engulf

1 envelop, bury, inundate, deluge, swamp.

OTHER WORDS FROM engulf

en·gulf·ment, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

Examples from the Web for engulfing

This sad drama has been compounded by an engulfing fog of speculation, frequently reaching a tone of hysteria.
The Baseless Rush to Blame the Pilots of Flight 370|Clive Irving|March 16, 2014|DAILY BEAST
A sprint from the alley to the east into the greenbelt and the engulfing woods.
The Man Oswald First Tried to Kill Before JFK|Bill Minutaglio, Steven L. Davis|October 3, 2013|DAILY BEAST
Kremlin-approved media coverage of Moscow's subway bombings is engulfing the city in paranoia.
Russia's Terror Panic Attack|Michael Idov|April 3, 2010|DAILY BEAST
The culture of tabs and paps was as nothing compared to the engulfing negative zone it has become.
Inside Studio 54's Wildest Nights|Anthony Haden-Guest|December 13, 2009|DAILY BEAST

A famous painting represents him, with his little son and the castaway crew, huddling among the engulfing icebergs.
The "Adventurers of England" on Hudson Bay|Agnes C. (Agnes Christina) Laut
And they met, like an engulfing wave, the bounding figures of the men in copper.
Astounding Stories of Super-Science, June, 1930|Various
The fountains of the great deep boil forth; fire-fountains, enveloping, engulfing.
The French Revolution|Thomas Carlyle
The two men gained the summit of the rock; the wide, waste, engulfing ocean was beneath.
The World's Greatest Books, Vol VI.|Various
The next moment the moss had swallowed the man, and the thick, peaty water hardly stirred over his engulfing.
Prisoners of Conscience|Amelia Edith Huddleston Barr

British Dictionary definitions for engulfing

engulf

ingulf

/ (ɪnˈɡʌlf) /

verb (tr)

to immerse, plunge, bury, or swallow up

(often passive) to overwhelmengulfed by debts

Derived forms of engulf

engulfment, noun

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

engulf

verb (used with object)

Words related to engulf

Words nearby engulf

Origin of engulf

SYNONYMS FOR engulf

OTHER WORDS FROM engulf

Examples from the Web for engulfing

British Dictionary definitions for engulfing

ingulf

verb (tr)

Derived forms of engulf