imbue

infuse, suffuse, imbue, ingrain, inoculate, leaven mean to introduce one thing into another so as to affect it throughout. infuse implies a pouring in of something that gives new life or significance.

• • new members infused enthusiasm into the club

suffuse implies a spreading through of something that gives an unusual color or quality.

• • a room suffused with light

imbue implies the introduction of a quality that fills and permeates the whole being.

• • imbue students with intellectual curiosity

ingrain, used only in the passive or past participle, suggests the deep implanting of a quality or trait.

• • clung to ingrained habits

inoculate implies an imbuing or implanting with a germinal idea and often suggests stealth or subtlety.

• • an electorate inoculated with dangerous ideas

leaven implies introducing something that enlivens, tempers, or markedly alters the total quality.

• • a serious play leavened with comic moments