as in suffuses
to cause (as a person) to become filled or saturated with a certain quality or principle
her training at the school for the deaf imbued her with a sense of purpose that she had never known before
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Recent Examples of imbues
Among the actors, the highlight turns out to be It breakout Lillis, who imbues Carrie with a vulnerability that smoothes over some sizable gaps in the character’s development.
—
Judy Berman, Time, 6 Nov. 2025
Yet Plemons imbues him with despair, finding a pitiful fragility in his aggression.
—Shirley Li, The Atlantic, 31 Oct. 2025
Dead Poets Society starred Hawke as one of several boarding school students under the tutelage of a sensitive new English teacher, John Keating (Williams), who imbues his pupils with a newfound appreciation for poetry.
—Wesley Stenzel, Entertainment Weekly, 30 Oct. 2025
This film imbues all of the psychological horror and weirdness of David Lynch’s original Twin Peaks series with a level of graphic horror that likely wouldn’t have flown on ABC.
—Emma Specter, Vogue, 19 Oct. 2025
Keaton takes on a role that could have been all cliché — that of a new mother trying to balance a demanding job with caring for a 14-month-old — and imbues it with such relatable honesty.
—Brian Tallerico, Vulture, 14 Oct. 2025
But director Kurtis David Harder (Influencer) imbues the proceedings with a slow-boiling paranoid energy that slowly overtakes the film.
—Samantha Allen, Them., 7 Oct. 2025
The archetype is, of course, familiar—but Hawke imbues each of these characters with infectious zeal and a solemn, even sacred, severity.
—Inkoo Kang, New Yorker, 22 Sep. 2025
The scene is a familiar one in these kinds of tales of regression, but Apatow imbues it with a tenderness.
—Esther Zuckerman, IndieWire, 7 Sep. 2025
Judy Berman, Time, 6 Nov. 2025
Yet Plemons imbues him with despair, finding a pitiful fragility in his aggression.
—Shirley Li, The Atlantic, 31 Oct. 2025
Dead Poets Society starred Hawke as one of several boarding school students under the tutelage of a sensitive new English teacher, John Keating (Williams), who imbues his pupils with a newfound appreciation for poetry.
—Wesley Stenzel, Entertainment Weekly, 30 Oct. 2025
This film imbues all of the psychological horror and weirdness of David Lynch’s original Twin Peaks series with a level of graphic horror that likely wouldn’t have flown on ABC.
—Emma Specter, Vogue, 19 Oct. 2025
Keaton takes on a role that could have been all cliché — that of a new mother trying to balance a demanding job with caring for a 14-month-old — and imbues it with such relatable honesty.
—Brian Tallerico, Vulture, 14 Oct. 2025
But director Kurtis David Harder (Influencer) imbues the proceedings with a slow-boiling paranoid energy that slowly overtakes the film.
—Samantha Allen, Them., 7 Oct. 2025
The archetype is, of course, familiar—but Hawke imbues each of these characters with infectious zeal and a solemn, even sacred, severity.
—Inkoo Kang, New Yorker, 22 Sep. 2025
The scene is a familiar one in these kinds of tales of regression, but Apatow imbues it with a tenderness.
—Esther Zuckerman, IndieWire, 7 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for imbues
Verb
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Smith suffuses the book with a kind of clinical detachment, even as the dread mounts with each page.—
Brian Truitt,
USA Today,
22 Oct. 2025
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An international cult favorite, Lee is revered for the philosophical nerve that suffuses his rigorously inventive melodramas, which variously pick apart the complexities of Korean society.—
Patrick Brzeski,
HollywoodReporter,
4 Aug. 2025
Verb
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The city’s multicultural energy infuses its evolving story, creating a welcoming space for travelers seeking both connection and culture.—
Essence,
Essence,
7 Nov. 2025
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Tessa Thompson always infuses the perfect mix of glamour and polish into her looks, and her ensemble for the 2025 WIF Honors Gala was no exception.—
Kelsey Stewart,
Footwear News,
7 Nov. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Imbues.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/imbues. Accessed 10 Nov. 2025.
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