CONSUME Synonyms: 141 Similar and Opposite Words

consume

verb

kən-ˈsüm

Definition of consume

as in to devour

to destroy all trace of massive fires had consumed hundreds of square miles of forest

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in to spend

to make complete use of the mining company consumed all of the local mineral resources and then moved on

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in to eat

to take in as food hungry enough to consume most of the pie

Synonyms & Similar Words

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of consume Large data centers can consume up to 5 million gallons per day; a recent study modelling water use in African data centers found that ChatGPT-4 used up to 60 liters of water — or a standard washing machine cycle — to produce a 10-page paper. — Paige Bruton, semafor.com, 2 Oct. 2026 The trio is helping to narrow the gap between the rate at which Latinos consume horror and the paltry representation that the demographic has historically had in the film genre. — Carlos De Loera, Los Angeles Times, 2 Oct. 2026 How much of her education was consumed by pursuing the complaint? — Jennifer Obel, Chicago Tribune, 2 Oct. 2026 When routine coordination no longer consumes most of their attention, one strong manager can support a much larger operation. — Michael Goshka, Forbes.com, 2 Oct. 2026 See All Example Sentences for consume

Recent Examples of Synonyms for consume

Verb

Joscha Bach of the California Institute for Machine Consciousness, another AGI pioneer, says a truly intelligent system should not need to devour the entire Internet and consume vast amounts of computing power for even the simplest query.

— George Musser, Scientific American, 17 Sep. 2026
Soon Drews noticed the speed with which her cheesecakes were devoured.

— David Farley, Bon Appetit Magazine, 15 Sep. 2026

Definition of devour

Verb

Hochul's announcement came shortly after dozens of students and community members spent hours demanding transparency and accountability from university leaders at a forum sponsored by Cornell's student government.

— Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 2 Oct. 2026
Earlier this year, César Alvarez spent far too much of their play The Potluck having their onstage avatar wiggle around on the hook of writing The Potluck.

— Sara Holdren, Vulture, 2 Oct. 2026

Definition of spend

Verb

Even though the vast majority of prescriptions are written for generic drugs, drug spending is surging faster than any other category — and drugs have been eating more of the employer’s premium for multiple years now.

— Bob Herman, STAT, 5 Oct. 2026
That can include wild animals that seem unusually tame, nocturnal animals that are out in the day, and pets that have trouble walking, eating or a significant change in personality.

— Nicole Buss, Sacbee.com, 4 Oct. 2026

Definition of eat

Verb

On Monday, workers hauled out a 200-pound piece of equipment that was ruined by the saltwater and sand carried in on the high tides.

— Alex Harris, Miami Herald, 6 Oct. 2026
So our goal is to learn how to maximize AI budgets, not ration them and ruin productivity gains.

— Konstantin Klyagin, Forbes.com, 6 Oct. 2026

Definition of ruin

Verb

Shawn and his father found the man on the easternmost coast of their island shortly after dusk, when the sky was drained of almost all its orange light and the waves had grown dark, topped with an eerie froth.

— Rachel Heng, New Yorker, 4 Oct. 2026
The road Game 3 win reigns supreme in Liberty lore after Sabrina Ionescu drained a 28-foot game-winning dagger.

— Fiifi Frimpong, New York Daily News, 3 Oct. 2026

Definition of drain

Verb

And then the way the government dealt with them, which was to just demolish them, is also kind of prescient.

— Elisabeth Garber-Paul, Rolling Stone, 3 Oct. 2026
National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir attended the demolition and said Israeli authorities had demolished more than 10,000 structures built without permits over the past year and a half.

— Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 3 Oct. 2026

Definition of demolish

Verb

Unsurprisingly, Chinese researchers have predicted that the main urban pension fund covering some 500 million urban workers, retirees, and cadres will be exhausted by the mid-2030s.

— Carl Minzner, Foreign Affairs, 5 Oct. 2026
In June, the NCAA ruled the class of 2022 had exhausted their eligibility.

— PJ Green October 2, Kansas City Star, 2 Oct. 2026

Definition of exhaust

Verb

Swaminarayan monks, who practice the eightfold version, see it as an important way to help eradicate all traces of desire and remain singularly focused on God.

— Bhakti Mamtora, The Conversation, 30 Sep. 2026
Community meetings focus on eradicating the homeless and protecting property values rather than supporting neighbors or providing shelter.

— Ben Travers, IndieWire, 24 Sep. 2026

Definition of eradicate

Browse Nearby Words

consumable

consume

consumed

See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

Style

“Consume.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/consume. Accessed 7 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation

Synonyms of consume

verb

Example Sentences

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

discreet

Popular in Grammar & Usage

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

The Exceptions of '-s' and '-es' Plurals

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?

Popular in Wordplay

The Real Origin of 'Supercalifragilistic'

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

7 Words for Bad Endings and Rough Situations

Even More Bird Names that Sound Like Insults (and Sometimes Are)

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World

Popular

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

The Real Origin of 'Supercalifragilistic'

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Games & Quizzes