consume

verb

con·sume | \ kən-ˈsüm

consumed; consuming

Definition of consume

transitive verb

1 : to do away with completely : destroy Fire consumed several buildings.

2a : to spend wastefully : squander consumed his inheritance on luxuries

b : use up Writing consumed much of his time.

3a : 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 More Example Sentences Learn More about consume

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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

That makes sense considering mobile usage as a primary option for browsing and consuming entertainment is increasingly popular in Asian and East Asian countries. — Julia Alexander, The Verge, "Netflix is testing cheaper mobile-only subscription tiers," 14 Nov. 2018 Turner is concerned about the more frequent fires that consume areas previously charred, called repeated short-interval fires. — Kristen Pope, Discover Magazine, "Wildfire Engulfed Yellowstone 30 Years Ago. Its Recovery Could Predict The Future of the West," 12 Nov. 2018 Now that tens of millions of North Americans can consume marijuana legally, with many more on the way, the rest of corporate America has left its financial institutions behind. — Carol Ryan, WSJ, "Weed Versus Greed on Wall Street," 25 Jan. 2019 The insanely fast rate at which Netflix users have consumed You's first season is proof of that. — Christopher Rosa, Glamour, "People Are Just Now Discovering You on Netflix, and They're Flipping Out," 9 Jan. 2019 Austin Bryant, a senior who’s been part of all three playoff games with Alabama, said the players did not spend all their time consumed with losing to the Tide. — Pete Iacobelli, The Seattle Times, "Clemson carrying memories of year’s loss into title game," 2 Jan. 2019 Many of the Sudanese fighters come from the region of Darfur, where violent conflict consumed the countryside for more than a decade. — Amanda Sakuma, Vox, "Saudi Arabia is reportedly outsourcing its war in Yemen to child soldiers," 30 Dec. 2018 In 2019, 10 minutes of every hour spent consuming media across TV and internet will come from individuals streaming video on mobile. — Casey Newton, The Verge, "22 predictions for social media in 2019," 15 Dec. 2018 Lots of people are choosing to watch different ways, consuming sports in different ways, betting, playing fantasy football. — Eric Johnson, Recode, "John Skipper, ESPN’s former president, is back ... at a rival sports media company.," 8 Nov. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'consume.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.