Library / English Dictionary

ENGULF

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

 I. (verb) 

Sense 1

Meaning:

Devote (oneself) fully to

Example:

He immersed himself into his studies

Synonyms:

absorb; engross; engulf; immerse; plunge; soak up; steep

Classified under:

Verbs of thinking, judging, analyzing, doubting

Hypernyms (to "engulf" is one way to...):

center; centre; concentrate; focus; pore; rivet (direct one's attention on something)

Verb group:

immerse; plunge (cause to be immersed)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "engulf"):

drink; drink in (be fascinated or spell-bound by; pay close attention to)

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s somebody
Somebody ----s somebody PP

Sense 2

Meaning:

Flow over or cover completely

Example:

The bright light engulfed him completely

Classified under:

Verbs of touching, hitting, tying, digging

Hypernyms (to "engulf" is one way to...):

enclose; enfold; envelop; enwrap; wrap (enclose or enfold completely with or as if with a covering)

Sentence frames:

Something ----s somebody
Something ----s something

Credits

 Context examples: 

A cell that enables a T-lymphocyte to recognize an antigen by engulfing the antigen, breaking down the antigen into smaller fragments which bind to MHC molecules on the surface of the antigen presenting cell.

(Antigen Presenting Cell, NCI Thesaurus)

The great black tower upon which they stood rose like a last island of refuge amid this sea of fire but the ominous crackling and roaring below showed that it would not be long ere it was engulfed also in the common ruin.

(The White Company, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

The eruption of the Eldgjá in the tenth century is known as a lava flood: a rare type of prolonged volcanic eruption in which huge flows of lava engulf the landscape, accompanied by a haze of sulphurous gases.

(Volcanic eruption influenced Iceland’s conversion to Christianity, University of Cambridge)

A cell that enables a T-lymphocyte to recognize an antigen by engulfing the antigen, breaking down the antigen into smaller fragments which bind to MHC molecules on the surface of the antigen processing cell.

(Antigen Processing Cell, NCI Thesaurus)

It is a matter of history—that secret history of a nation which is often so much more intimate and interesting than its public chronicles—that Oberstein, eager to complete the coup of his lifetime, came to the lure and was safely engulfed for fifteen years in a British prison.

(His Last Bow, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

Used as an immunostimulant in complementary medicine, NBG binds specifically to receptors found on the surface of specialized macrophages, granulocytes and natural killer cells and may stimulate these cells to become more active in engulfing and digesting foreign antigens; NBG also induces the production of cytokines that further augment the host immune response to foreign antigens.

(Immutol, NCI Thesaurus)