enthused

Meanings

1. 1verbintransitiveinformal

   Spoke with great excitement and admiration about something, as the past tense of enthuse.

   Grammar: Often followed by about or over: she enthused about the trip.

   Patterns

   • enthuse about something
   • enthuse over something

   She enthused about the concert for days.

   The critics enthused over the new restaurant.

   He enthused that it was the best day of his life.

2. 2adjectivecomparableinformal

   Feeling or showing eager interest and excitement.

   Grammar: Informal; many writers prefer enthusiastic.

   Patterns

   • enthused about something

   The team seemed enthused about the new plan.

   He was less than enthused by the idea.

   An enthused crowd cheered the band.

Common combinations

enthused about

She was enthused about the new job.

enthused over

They enthused over the beautiful view.

greatly enthused

The students were greatly enthused by the visit.

not enthused

He did not seem enthused.

enthused by

Everyone was enthused by her speech.

Synonyms and how they differ

enthusiastic

Enthusiastic is the standard adjective and is safe in formal writing, while enthused is more casual.

excited

Excited is broader and may include nervousness, whereas enthused is positive interest.

keen

Keen is British and suggests eagerness to do something.

gushed

Gushed suggests excessive praise that may seem insincere.

Opposites

Word family

enthuse verb

to speak or act with enthusiasm

enthusiasm noun

strong excited interest

enthusiast noun

a person who loves a particular activity

enthusiastic adjective

full of eager interest

enthusiastically adverb

in an eager way

Commonly confused: enthused or infused?

Practice

Make it your own

Write a sentence using “enthused”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.

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