enshrine
Americanverb (used with object)
-
enshrines,
present (3rd person singular)
-
enshrined,
past participle, past
-
enshrining
present participle
-
to enclose in or as in a shrine.
His love for her is enshrined forever in his poetry.
-
to cherish as sacred.
The memory of our friendship will be enshrined in my heart.
verb
-
to place or enclose in or as if in a shrine
-
to hold as sacred; cherish; treasure
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
enshrinesimple
-
enshrinessimple
-
have enshrinedperfect
-
has enshrinedperfect
-
am enshriningprogressive
-
are enshriningprogressive
-
is enshriningprogressive
-
have been enshriningperfect progressive
-
has been enshriningperfect progressive
Past
-
enshrinedsimple
-
had enshrinedperfect
-
was enshriningprogressive
-
were enshriningprogressive
-
had been enshriningperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of enshrine
Explanation
If your mother enshrines your first drawing, she might frame it and hang it in a special place, as if it were a holy relic. To enshrine is to put something special, often religious, into a protective place. A shrine is a place considered holy because something special happened there or a case that holds sacred items. Places where people have claimed to see Jesus sometimes become shrines. When you enshrine something, it means you are creating a shrine around it, or you are giving it its own protected, revered space. This can be literal or figurative. At a funeral, the minister might say that the deceased will forever be enshrined in the memories of those who loved him or her.
Vocabulary lists containing enshrine
The Crossover
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
Vocabulary from Hillary Clinton's Concession Speech, November 9, 2016
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
Martin Scorsese on Cinema
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
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:
Athens in turn has been irritated by a Turkish plan to enshrine into domestic law claims over parts of the Aegean.
From Barron's ● Jul. 31, 2026
I would enshrine gender equality in the Constitution, explicitly clarifying that the Equal Rights Amendment is part of our founding document.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 1, 2026
Once the slave power had been vanquished, the Reconstruction Congress sought to enshrine birthright citizenship in the Constitution so it could never be stripped away again.
From Slate ● Jun. 30, 2026
But anxieties about growing diversity and rising indifference had convinced many Americans of the need to enshrine Christianity in the Constitution.
From Salon ● Jun. 29, 2026
Working as a lawyer in South Africa meant operating under a debased system of justice, a code of law that did not enshrine equality but its opposite.
From "Long Walk to Freedom" by Nelson Mandela
The International Court of Justice has been asked to deliver a so-called advisory opinion on whether a treaty drawn up in 1948 by the International Labour Organisation implicitly enshrines the right to strike.
From Barron's ● May 21, 2026
In fact, Article IV of the treaty enshrines enrichment as an “inalienable right.”
From Slate ● Feb. 27, 2026
It enshrines the commitment to uphold the Seven Principles of Public Life, and details "the overarching duty on Ministers to comply with the law and to protect the integrity of public life".
From BBC ● Sep. 5, 2025
Using a style of elegant lyricism, which enshrines tiny moments into glisteningly miraculous turning points, Erice lets the exchanges between the people he’s conceived play out without the need to advance the plot.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 31, 2024
It enshrines certain maxims, some derived from Roman law, some invented by Coke, who, as J.B.
From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 10, Slice 1 "Evangelical Church Conference" to "Fairbairn, Sir William" by Various
We all grasp what it means to be an American and how that is enshrined in the Constitution.
From Slate ● Aug. 31, 2026
Only three Ramones songs ever made it to the Billboard Hot 100 — “Rockaway Beach,” “Sheena Is A Punk Rocker,” and “Do You Wanna Dance,” all absolute bangers that should be enshrined in the culture.
From Salon ● Aug. 10, 2026
In the not-too-distant past, the Chargers had one of the NFL’s premier tight ends in Antonio Gates, enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame last summer.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 23, 2026
That publication has been a proponent for changing, extending or rejecting the legal definition of genocide enshrined in the 1948 Genocide Convention, formulated by Jewish jurist Raphael Lemkin.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 22, 2026
In early 1865, Illinois struck down its Black Laws and became the first state to ratify the Thirteenth Amendment, which enshrined in the Constitution the end of slavery.
From "A Few Red Drops: The Chicago Race Riot of 1919" by Claire Hartfield
Yousef, whose community strongly promotes gender equality, said she also wants to work on "defending women's rights and enshrining them in the country's constitution".
From Barron's ● Aug. 7, 2026
Pope Leo XIV on Monday warned that AI risked enshrining “an anti-human vision,” replacing jobs with dehumanizing work and consuming vast amounts of water and energy.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 28, 2026
In the aftermath of the crime, newly minted fans of Mangione quickly fitted the man with revolutionary trappings, enshrining him as an avenger of working-class power.
From Slate ● May 1, 2026
City Council voted to designate the “Brady Bunch” house as a historic-cultural monument on Wednesday, enshrining the Studio City Midcentury as a piece of the city’s history.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 4, 2026
We cannot glory in the enshrining for memory of things that we do not care to remember.
From English Verse Specimens Illustrating its Principles and History by Raymond MacDonald Alden
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.
