devour

verb

de·vour | \ di-ˈvau̇(-ə)r

, dē-\

devoured; devouring; devours

Definition of devour

transitive verb

1 : to eat up greedily or ravenously devoured the turkey and mashed potatoes

2 : to use up or destroy as if by eating We are devouring the world's resources.

3 : to prey upon devoured by guilt

4 : to enjoy avidly devours books

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Examples of devour in a Sentence

He devoured everything on his plate. The lions devoured their prey. She devoured every golf magazine she could find. He watched intently, devouring the scene before him with his eyes.

Recent Examples on the Web

The novel, whose manuscript Coelho wrote in just two weeks, became a global phenomenon devoured by youngsters, celebrities and leaders like Bill Clinton and Boris Yeltsin. — Abdi Latif Dahir, Quartz Africa, "Paulo Coelho wants to give his books free to schools and libraries in Africa," 31 May 2019 Today, Waugh reigns triumphant in the literary pantheon, one of the few twentieth-century British writers enthusiastically devoured by the young. — David Gilmour, The New York Review of Books, "Max Hastings," 4 Apr. 2019 But once the gifts have been exchanged and the brunch has been devoured, one of the best ways to continue the celebrations at home is to plop down on the sofa and share some Father's Day Bible verses together. — Blair Donovan, Country Living, "25 Loving Father's Day Bible Verses to Share With Your Dad," 2 May 2019 There's evidence that Kronos has devoured roughly 15 rocky planets. — David Grossman, Popular Mechanics, "Kronos, the Star That Has Devoured 15 Planets," 31 Jan. 2018 Does the dog gaze at, bark at, grip or greedily devour its prey? — Anne Carson, Harper's magazine, "From a manuscript in progress. Carson’s collection of performance pieces," 10 June 2019 Michelle Lesco of Tucson, Arizona, devoured 20 dozen oysters in eight minutes to come in second, winning $500. — Ann Maloney, nola.com, "Find out who took home all the clams at the New Orleans Oyster Festival," 4 June 2019 But in an amazing twist, during the operation a vet found Maisy had actually devoured four teddy bears which had become lodged in her stomach. — Fox News, "Sick dog's 'cancer' revealed to be chewed up teddy bears," 20 Apr. 2018 The first-ever meeting between a U.S. president and a North Korean leader was to kick off at 9 a.m. Tuesday (8 p.m. Central time Monday in the U.S.) with a handshake, an image sure to be devoured from Washington to Pyongyang and beyond. — chicagotribune.com, "Summit day in Singapore: Excitement high, expectations lower," 11 June 2018

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