eat

eat up

verb

Definition of EAT

1

to receive or accept gladly or readily <predictably, moviegoers ate up the sequel to last summer's blockbuster>

Synonyms drink (in), eat (up), embrace, lap (up)

Related Words adopt, espouse, take up; greet, hail; enjoy, like, prefer; cherry-pick, choose, cull, decide (on), elect, handpick, name, opt (for), pick, select, single (out), take

Near Antonyms balk (at), decline, pass up, refuse, reject, spurn, throw over, turn down; demur (to), object (to)

2

to destroy all trace of <the surf created by a powerful hurricane could really eat up what's left of the island's eastern beach>

Synonyms devour, eat (up)

Related Words gut; deplete, drain, exhaust, expend, spend, use up; annihilate, decimate, demolish, desolate, devastate, do in, pulverize, raze, ruin, shatter, smash, tear down, waste, wreck; annihilate, blot out, eradicate, exterminate, extinguish, extirpate, obliterate, remove, rub out, stamp (out), wipe out

Near Antonyms conserve, preserve, protect, save; build, construct, erect, put up, raise