indulge
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2 ENTRIES FOUND:

in·dulge

verb \in-ˈdəlj\
in·dulgedin·dulg·ing

Definition of INDULGE

transitive verb
1
a : to give free rein to
b : to take unrestrained pleasure in : gratify
2
a : to yield to the desire of : humor <please indulge me for a moment>
b : to treat with excessive leniency, generosity, or consideration
intransitive verb
: to indulge oneself
in·dulg·er noun

Examples of INDULGE

  1. It's my birthday. I'm going to indulge myself and eat whatever I want to eat.
  2. It's my birthday. I'm going to indulge.
  3. Please indulge me while I review the topics we covered yesterday.
  4. The museum is an excellent place to let children indulge their curiosity about dinosaurs.
  5. She bought a house with a big yard so that she could indulge her passion for gardening.

Origin of INDULGE

Latin indulgēre to be complaisant
First Known Use: circa 1623

Synonym Discussion of INDULGE

indulge, pamper, humor, spoil, baby, mollycoddle mean to show undue favor to a person's desires and feelings. indulge implies excessive compliance and weakness in gratifying another's or one's own desires <indulged myself with food at the slightest excuse>. pamper implies inordinate gratification of desire for luxury and comfort with consequent enervating effect <pampered by the amenities of modern living>. humor stresses a yielding to a person's moods or whims <humored him by letting him tell the story>. spoil stresses the injurious effects on character by indulging or pampering <foolish parents spoil their children>. baby suggests excessive care, attention, or solicitude <babying students by grading too easily>. mollycoddle suggests an excessive degree of care and attention to another's health or welfare <refused to mollycoddle her malingering son>.

Rhymes with INDULGE

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