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
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enshrinesimple
-
enshrinessimple
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have enshrinedperfect
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has enshrinedperfect
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am enshriningprogressive
-
are enshriningprogressive
-
is enshriningprogressive
-
have been enshriningperfect progressive
-
has been enshriningperfect progressive
Past
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enshrinedsimple
-
had enshrinedperfect
-
was enshriningprogressive
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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
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Vocabulary from Hillary Clinton's Concession Speech, November 9, 2016
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Martin Scorsese on Cinema
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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:
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
In response, Hyundai’s union has made unprecedented demands seeking to enshrine job protections in the era of robots and AI.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 15, 2026
Over the years, he helped various communities in some capacity to incorporate and eventually started working to enshrine the liberty cities model into law.
From Salon ● May 3, 2026
Those were investigative grand jury hearings, meaning prosecutors could use them to enshrine testimony against Burke, but could not use the proceedings to secure an indictment against Burke.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 23, 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
While no law explicitly enshrines a person's voice in Japan, the justice ministry published legally non-binding guidelines last month clarifying its protection under existing rights.
From Barron's ● Sep. 27, 2026
In fact, Article IV of the treaty enshrines enrichment as an “inalienable right.”
From Slate ● Feb. 27, 2026
It also enshrines separation of powers and judicial independence, and guarantees women's rights, freedom of expression and media freedom.
From BBC ● Mar. 13, 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
This is a massive building visited by thousands of pilgrims, because it enshrines a relic of great sanctity, nothing less than the tooth of Buddha!
From Round the Wonderful World by A. S. (Archibald Stevenson) Forrest
The American Civil Liberties Union applauded the move over a practice it said conlifted with "human dignity, fairness, and the values enshrined in our Constitution."
From Barron's ● Nov. 5, 2026
The Measure G governance reform task force is setting everything up, but officials realized that for true independence, the seven-member commission and the compliance office must be permanently enshrined in the county charter.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 1, 2026
Now he is championing a "people-led" movement that promotes the protection of human rights and rule of law as enshrined in the constitution.
From BBC ● Oct. 1, 2026
But it is still a body of American citizens and, after the Progressive Era reforms enshrined in the 17th Amendment, elected by the people.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 2, 2026
The Internet version of you becomes enshrined so that pathetic people like me can visit occasionally and try to pretend you’re not really gone.
From "We Are the Ants" by Shaun David Hutchinson
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
Morocco's King Mohammed VI lauded the vote as "historic," saying "we are opening a new and victorious chapter in the process of enshrining the Moroccan character of the Sahara."
From Barron's ● Oct. 31, 2025
Blumenfield wants to protect Executive Directive 1, which was issued by Bass shortly after she declared the local emergency, by enshrining its provisions into city law.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 29, 2025
In addition to the early churches of basilican plan are a few of circular form, such as that at Rome enshrining the tomb of S. Constanza, the daughter of Constantine, dating from about A.D.
From Architecture by Nancy R E Meugens Bell
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
