immerse

[ih-murs]

verb (used with object)

immersed, immersing 

1. to plunge into or place under a liquid; dip; sink.

   Synonyms: douse, duck, immerge

2. to involve deeply; absorb.

   She is totally immersed in her law practice.

   Synonyms: engage

3. to baptize by immersion.

4. to embed; bury.

   Antonyms: disinter

immerse

/ ɪˈmɜːs /

verb

1. (often foll by in) to plunge or dip into liquid

2. to involve deeply; engross

   to immerse oneself in a problem

3. to baptize by immersion

Other Word Forms

• immersible adjective
• reimmerse verb (used with object)

Word History and Origins

Origin of immerse¹

First recorded in 1595–1605; from Latin immersus “plunged, sunken into,” past participle of immergere “to dip, plunge, sink into”; immerge

Word History and Origins

Origin of immerse¹

C17: from Latin immergere, from _im- (in) + mergere to dip

Synonym Study

See dip ¹.

Example Sentences

If you’re a Gen Xer who immersed yourself in punk rock or listened to college radio, The Waterboys will be a familiar name, if they don’t make your heart sing with fond nostalgia.

From Salon

For five days in August, I would immerse myself in a different body of water every day in the wilds of Marin County near Stinson Beach.

From Los Angeles Times

“Bone Lake” offers up an appealing surface but it’s ultimately too shallow to get you immersed.

From Los Angeles Times

What other mainstream title would dare the audience to confront their own “see no color” blind spots by immersing them in a narrative constructed around its amiable protagonist?

From Salon

But the truth is that, for anyone who isn’t already immersed in the aesthetics of the megachurch world, the whole event was unsettling.

From Salon

Related Words

• baptize 
• bathe 
• bury 
• drench 
• drown 
• saturate 
• soak 
• steep