Adjacent Words

Devour definitions

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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

DEVOUR, v.t. [L., to eat.]
1. To eat up; to eat with greediness; to eat ravenously, as a beast of prey, or as a hungry man.
We will say, some evil beast hath devoured him. Genesis 37.
In the morning, he shall devour the prey. Genesis 49.
2. To destroy; to consume with rapidity and violence.
I will send a fire into the house of Hazael, which shall devour the palaces of Ben-Hadad. Amos 1.
Famine and pestilence shall devour him. Ezek 7.
3. To destroy; to annihilate; to consume.
He seemed in swiftness to devour the way.
4. To waste; to consume; to spend in dissipation and riot.
As soon as this thy son had come, who hath devoured thy living with harlots. Luke 15.
5. To consume wealth and substance by fraud, oppression, or illegal exactions.
Ye devour widows houses. Matthew 23.
6. To destroy spiritually; to ruin the soul.
Your adversary, the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour. 1 Peter 5.
7. To slay.
The sword shall devour the young lions. Nahum 2.
8. To enjoy with avidity.
Longing they look, and gaping at the sight, devour her oer and oer with vast delight.

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

v
1: destroy completely; "Fire had devoured our home"
2: enjoy avidly; "She devoured his novels"
3: eat immoderately; "Some people can down a pound of meat in the course of one meal" [syn: devour, down, consume, go through]
4: eat greedily; "he devoured three sandwiches" [syn: devour, guttle, raven, pig]

Merriam Webster's

transitive verb Etymology: Middle English, from Anglo-French devour-, stem of devorer, from Latin devorare, from de- + vorare to devour — more at voracious Date: 14th century 1. to eat up greedily or ravenously <lions devouring their prey> 2. to use up or destroy as if by eating <we are devouring the world's resources> 3. to prey upon <devoured by guilt> 4. to enjoy avidly <devours books> • devourer noun

Oxford Reference Dictionary

v.tr. 1 eat hungrily or greedily. 2 (of fire etc.) engulf, destroy. 3 take in greedily with the eyes or ears (devoured book after book). 4 absorb the attention of (devoured by anxiety). Derivatives: devourer n. devouringly adv. Etymology: ME f. OF devorer f. L devorare (as DE-, vorare swallow)

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Devour De*vour", v. t. [imp. & p. p. Devoured; p. pr. & vb. n. Devouring.] [F. d['e]vorer, fr. L. devorare; de + vorare to eat greedily, swallow up. See Voracious.] 1. To eat up with greediness; to consume ravenously; to feast upon like a wild beast or a glutton; to prey upon. Some evil beast hath devoured him. --Gen. xxxvii. 20. 2. To seize upon and destroy or appropriate greedily, selfishly, or wantonly; to consume; to swallow up; to use up; to waste; to annihilate. Famine and pestilence shall devour him. --Ezek. vii. 15. I waste my life and do my days devour. --Spenser. 3. To enjoy with avidity; to appropriate or take in eagerly by the senses. Longing they look, and gaping at the sight, Devour her o'er with vast delight. --Dryden. Syn: To consume; waste; destroy; annihilate.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

(devours, devouring, devoured) 1. If a person or animal devours something, they eat it quickly and eagerly. A medium-sized dog will devour at least one can of food per day... VERB: V n 2. If you devour a book or magazine, for example, you read it quickly and with great enthusiasm. She began devouring newspapers when she was only 12. VERB: V n

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

v. a. 1. Gorge, engorge, eat greedily or ravenously, swallow eagerly. 2. Destroy, consume, annihilate, waste, spend, expend, swallow up, destroy swiftly or rapidly.

Moby Thesaurus

absorb, adore, and sinker, annihilate, appreciate, bask in, batten, be a sucker, be pleased with, be taken in, bite, bolt, bolt down, bring to ruin, condemn, confound, consume, cram, damn, deal destruction, decimate, delight in, demolish, depredate, derive pleasure from, desecrate, desolate, despoil, destroy, devastate, dispatch, dispose of, dissipate, dissolve, down, drink, drink in, eat, eat up, engorge, engulf, enjoy, eradicate, exhaust, fall for, feast on, feed on, freak out on, get away with, get down, get high on, gloat over, glut, gluttonize, go for, gobble, gobble up, gorge, gormandize, groove on, gulp, gulp down, gut, gut with fire, guttle, guzzle, havoc, imbibe, incinerate, indulge in, ingest, ingurgitate, lap up, lay in ruins, lay waste, like, line, live to eat, love, luxuriate in, meal, nibble, obliterate, overcome, overwhelm, partake of, pig, pillage, polish off, put away, ravage, raven, rejoice in, relish, revel in, riot in, ruin, ruinate, sack, savor, shipwreck, smack the lips, spoliate, squander, stuff, surround, swallow, swallow anything, swallow hook, swallow up, swallow whole, swamp, swill, swill down, swim in, swing at, take, take down, take in, take pleasure in, take the bait, throw into disorder, tuck in, tumble for, unleash destruction, unleash the hurricane, upheave, use up, vandalize, vaporize, wallow in, waste, wipe out, wolf, wolf down, worshiping, wrack, wreak havoc, wreck