devours

Definition of devoursnext
present tense third-person singular of devour
1
2
3
as in inhales
to swallow or eat greedily the starving villagers simply devoured the relief food

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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 devours From her experience, the grasshopper drawing attention in Arizona devours everything in its path, whereas the chapulín is tied to greener environments and specific crops, such as cornfields, alfalfa, and squash leaves. Nadia Cantú, AZCentral.com, 25 Mar. 2026 But May also routinely devours Tool, Nine Inch Nails, and jazz albums from Miles Davis. Nick Romano, Entertainment Weekly, 26 Feb. 2026 But in Washington, politics devours everything, even the sacred. Tara Palmeri, Vanity Fair, 12 Jan. 2026 Gratitude requires perspective, but perpetual outrage devours perspective. MSNBC Newsweek, 27 Nov. 2025 Without virtue, liberty collapses into chaos, and freedom devours itself. Carolyn McKinney, Boston Herald, 22 Sep. 2025 Every revolution devours its children. Sam Knight, New Yorker, 21 Sep. 2025 And Sacks, a PayPal Mafia member and veteran Silicon Valley investor, is just the sort of titan of industry this town routinely devours and humiliates — from Rex Tillerson to, well, Elon Musk. Ben Smith, semafor.com, 8 Sep. 2025 Even as the gyre devours the sun. Alaa Alqaisi august 13, Literary Hub, 13 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for devours
Verb
  • Biofuels are also increasingly being used to power heavy transport, including aviation, which consumes about 8% of oil globally and where electrification remains a distant dream, while a push is underway to expand biofuel usage in shipping, responsible for about 7% of global oil consumption.
    Nithin Coca, semafor.com, 23 Apr. 2026
  • Flowering consumes a lot of plant energy, and stems that are blooming won’t root well.
    Lauren Landers, Better Homes & Gardens, 20 Apr. 2026
Verb
  • Barden spends a lot of time speaking to agents and other athlete representatives.
    Liam Tharme, New York Times, 25 Apr. 2026
  • How Gen X spends Shoppers are seen outside the French multinational personal care and beauty retail brand Sephora store in Spain.
    Laya Neelakandan, CNBC, 25 Apr. 2026
Verb
  • If the search for a large outdoor planter exhausts you—just get a terra-cotta planter.
    Julia Harrison, Architectural Digest, 6 Apr. 2026
  • As the oil blockade quickly exhausts Cuba’s supply of fuel, triggering a series of lengthy, island-wide blackouts, many here are exhausted and are becoming increasingly vocal about their desire for fundamental changes in Cuba.
    Kate Linthicum, Los Angeles Times, 29 Mar. 2026
Verb
  • What's more, while virtually all VTOLs being developed these days are electric, the Janus-1 is powered by a turboshaft engine that gulps n' burns diesel, kerosene or Jet A fuel.
    Ben Coxworth October 21, New Atlas, 21 Oct. 2025
Verb
  • This idea of reasonableness is easily caricatured as moral timidity or a bloodless neutrality that drains politics of passion.
    Nikhil Krishnan, New Yorker, 20 Apr. 2026
  • That’s why a fine textured soil, like clay, drains more poorly than does a coarse, sandy soil.
    Paul Cappiello, Louisville Courier Journal, 17 Apr. 2026
Verb
  • Director Allan Deberton crams much story and characterization in those opening frames.
    Murtada Elfadl, Variety, 24 Feb. 2026
  • Instead, the show crams everything into a space that can't hold it, culminating in this past third season that exploded with too much of practically everything.
    Matthew Razak, Space.com, 4 Feb. 2026
Verb
  • Unlike many mineral sunscreens that can sit heavily on the skin, this one absorbs quickly and has a lightweight, smoothing effect.
    Brigitt Earley, Glamour, 24 Apr. 2026
  • The luciferase catalyzes the oxidation of luciferin, producing blue light, which GFP then absorbs and re-emits as green fluorescence.
    Samantha Agate, Charlotte Observer, 23 Apr. 2026
Verb
  • When Dunk proposes to Prince Maekar that maybe the Seven spared him for some future purpose, Maekar scoffs.
    Noel Murray, Vulture, 23 Feb. 2026
  • The mysterious Egg scoffs at Dunk’s rope belt but offers to be his squire.
    Sarah Larson, New Yorker, 27 Jan. 2026

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Cite this Entry

“Devours.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/devours. Accessed 28 Apr. 2026.

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