Meaning & use

consume

verb·Academic

To eat, drink, or use up something, such as food, resources, or time.

See it in a sentence

The old factory consumes enormous amounts of electricity every single day.

She consumed the entire novel in one long, quiet afternoon.

A note on using this word

"Consume" can describe eating or drinking, using resources, or being overwhelmed by emotion, as in "consumed by guilt"; context decides the sense.

Words with a similar meaning

use updevouringest

Choose a synonym to suit the sentence. Meanings can overlap without being identical.

Words with an opposite meaning

Another way to use it

2. verb

To completely occupy someone's thoughts or dominate their feelings.

Jealousy consumed him until he could think of nothing else.

Make it your own

Write a sentence using “consume”, then compare your use with the examples above.

Your draft stays on this page and is not sent anywhere.