ingest
Americanverb (used with object)
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to take, as food, into the body (opposed to egest).
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Aeronautics. to draw (foreign matter) into the inlet of a jet engine, often causing damage to the engine.
verb
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to take (food or liquid) into the body
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(of a jet engine) to suck in (an object, a bird, etc)
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of ingest
First recorded in 1610–20; from Latin ingestus, past participle of ingerere “to throw or pour into”; see in- 2, gest
Explanation
When you ingest something, you swallow it or otherwise consume it. If you don't ingest enough iron, you'll feel tired and weak and you'll look pale. Trees ingest carbon dioxide, and humans ingest the oxygen that trees in turn produce. We also ingest a lot of other things, like French fries, ice cream, and root beer. You can also use this word to mean "take in information," like when you ingest the details of your history book. Ingest has a Latin root, ingestus, "poured in," from in-, "into," and gerere, "to carry."
Vocabulary lists containing ingest
The Body Eclectic: Words For Common Physical Functions
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The Smartest Kid in the Universe
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Iveliz Explains It All
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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.
The tools ingest historical crime data and score neighborhoods on predicted risk so officers can be routed toward the resulting hot spots.
From Salon • May 12, 2026
“One of the key things we looked at was its ability to ingest our menu,” Baartman said.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 16, 2026
People who eat lots of high-glyphosate foods may ingest up to 0.001 grams.
From Slate • Mar. 5, 2026
Devlin suspects that slow feeding in cold conditions and the complexity of natural soils may limit how much plastic the larvae actually ingest.
From Science Daily • Feb. 16, 2026
"Don't forget these. They're popular now. The Minister of Health says we all should ingest colorful vegetables and even flowers. It's beneficial, supposedly."
From "The Belles" by Dhonielle Clayton
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.
