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)
• ruin
• demolish
• drain
• eradicate

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

Smoke remains visible near Patterson Bluff and Dinkey Creek as fuels continue to consume in the fire perimeter. —Ca Wildfire Bot, Sacbee.com, 5 Sep. 2025

Conversely, consuming healthy amounts of iron and vitamin D was associated with hair growth. —Brian Mastroianni, Health, 5 Sep. 2025

Those three cost categories consume 64 per cent, 24 per cent and 27 per cent of revenues respectively. —Chris Weatherspoon, New York Times, 5 Sep. 2025

Once these fires consume our concrete jungles, their smoke includes particulate matter from our cities. —Lahari Vuppaladhadiam, Chicago Tribune, 5 Sep. 2025

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

Rhymes for consume

• assume
• backroom
• ballroom
• barroom
• bathroom
• bedroom
• boardroom
• bridegroom
• classroom
• cloakroom
• costume
• courtroom

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