suffuse
Americanverb (used with object)
verb
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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suffusesimple
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suffusessimple
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have suffusedperfect
-
has suffusedperfect
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am suffusingprogressive
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are suffusingprogressive
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is suffusingprogressive
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have been suffusingperfect progressive
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has been suffusingperfect progressive
Past
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suffusedsimple
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had suffusedperfect
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was suffusingprogressive
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were suffusingprogressive
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had been suffusingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of suffuse
First recorded in 1580–90, suffuse is from the Latin word suffūsus (past participle of suffundere ). See suf-, fuse 2
Explanation
The verb suffuse means to spread and fill a space, like the way the smell of wildflowers might suffuse a meadow. Suffuse is a synonym for steep. Like tea whose flavor grows stronger the more it steeps, when you suffuse something it spreads throughout until an area is full, or even overly full. Another synonym, infuse, looks a lot like suffuse. Both words come from the Latin word fundere, which means "to pour."
Vocabulary lists containing suffuse
The Alchemist
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A Thousand Splendid Suns
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Song of Solomon
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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:
Online tools suffuse the modern classroom, requiring students to navigate Canvas and download readings from the school library.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 30, 2026
Nonsurgical options like dermal fillers or fat grafting can suffuse depressions to create a more centered appearance.
From Slate ● Feb. 22, 2026
With each breath, we suffuse our bodies with oxygen-rich air that keeps our organs and tissues healthy and working properly -- and without oxygen, we can survive mere minutes.
From Science Daily ● Mar. 6, 2024
Similarly, the malaise that has begun to suffuse TikTok feels systemic, market-driven and also potentially existential, suggesting the end of a flourishing era and the precipice of a wasteland period.
From New York Times ● Feb. 1, 2024
The roses flamed up as though with a sudden passion from within; a new and profound significance seemed to suffuse the shining pages of the books.
From "Brave New World" by Aldous Huxley
Ms. Brown’s Erica tries to mediate the tension that suffuses the house, while Mr. Braithwaite’s Leni has a cool humor that also helps ease the fraught dynamic.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 12, 2026
“I was interested in the bittersweet, funeral quality that suffuses Tsai’s film,” Lund says.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 14, 2025
As the chicken roasts, the paste blends with the rendered fat from the skin and suffuses the meat with rich, complex flavors.
From Washington Times ● Oct. 3, 2023
Unease about Mr. Biden’s age suffuses Democratic circles.
From New York Times ● Jun. 4, 2023
The heavenly spheres are slowly spinning in their places, making a music that suffuses the cosmos.
From "Zero: The Biography of a Dangerous Idea" by Charles Seife
American life has become suffused with the results of his self-aggrandizement.
From Slate ● Jun. 2, 2026
This exquisite writer has once again delivered an incandescent work of fiction — sweet, but never sentimental, infinitely wise and suffused with love.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 2, 2026
But rearing children is like a long baseball season suffused with an endless series of balls, strikes, hits and misses.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 19, 2025
Consider all that has happened in the past six months to erase the bearish sentiment that suffused our spring survey—and Wall Street.
From Barron's ● Oct. 23, 2025
The atmosphere was suffused with the sweet scent of smoke.
From "The Alchemist" by Paulo Coelho
Shalit became a popular fixture in American households from the 1970s through to his retirement in 2010, stylistically standing out with his thick-framed spectacles, polkadot bowties and frizzed hair, suffusing his segments with pun-filled wordplay.
From BBC ● Jun. 13, 2026
As you chew, the cardamom bits send out little bolts of flavor, suffusing the cake with a lovely scent of spice.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 21, 2025
But beginning around 1820, the year of the Missouri Compromise, slavery began to dominate American politics, suffusing even issues that one might think were unrelated, such as federal funding for infrastructure projects.
From Salon ● Jul. 26, 2025
From them, Lovato learned to throw her body into her otherwise supple voice, suffusing every peak and valley of a song with a magnitude fitting for rock.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 18, 2022
Then, while Matt watched with delight and pride suffusing his face, she unfolded it and held it to the window light.
From "Gathering Blue" by Lois Lowry
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.
