consume

verb

con·​sume kən-ˈsüm 

consumed; consuming

transitive verb

1

: to do away with completely : destroy

Fire consumed several buildings.

2

a

: to spend wastefully : squander

consumed his inheritance on luxuries

b

: use up

Writing consumed much of his time.

3

a

: to eat or drink especially in great quantity

consumed several bags of pretzels

b

: to enjoy avidly : devour

… mysteries, which she consumes for fun …

—Eden Ross Lipson

4

: to engage fully : engross

consumed with curiosity

5

: to utilize as a customer

consume goods and services

intransitive verb

1

: to waste or burn away : perish

2

: to utilize economic goods

Synonyms

• devour
• eat (up)

Examples of consume in a Sentence

The new lights consume less electricity.

She's making an effort to live more simply and consume less.

Hundreds of books were consumed in the fire.

Recent Examples on the Web

If necessary, vampire bats can gorge and consume four times their body weight in liquid. —Mack Degeurin, Popular Science, 7 Nov. 2024

Koalas spend most of their time sleeping and eating — consuming a diet mostly of eucalyptus leaves. —Allison Futterman, Discover Magazine, 6 Nov. 2024

FreshDirect meals are delivered in insulated, recyclable containers that maintain optimal temperature, so your food stays delicious and safe to consume. —Kasey Caminiti, USA TODAY, 5 Nov. 2024

That may mean installing limits to your time on certain apps, setting up two-factor authentication or only consuming news through old-school media sources. —Ryan Ermey, CNBC, 5 Nov. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, from Middle French or Latin; Middle French consumer, from Latin consumere, from com- + sumere to take up, take, from sub- up + emere to take — more at sub-, redeem

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

Kids Definition

consume

verb

con·​sume kən-ˈsüm 

consumed; consuming

1

: to destroy by or as if by fire

2

: use up, spend

the search consumed most of our time

3

: to eat or drink up

consumed too much ice cream

4

: to take up the interest or attention of

was consumed with curiosity

5

: to use as a customer

consume goods

consumable

-ˈsü-mə-bəl

adjective