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engulf

[ en-guhlf ]

/ ɛnˈgʌlf /

SEE SYNONYMS FOR engulf ON THESAURUS.COM

verb (used with object)

to swallow up in or as in a gulf; submerge: The overflowing river has engulfed many small towns along its banks.

to plunge or immerse, as into a gulf: He engulfed himself in his studies.

Also ingulf.

Origin of engulf

First recorded in 1545–55; en-¹ + gulf

SYNONYMS FOR engulf

1 envelop, bury, inundate, deluge, swamp.

SEE SYNONYMS FOR engulf ON THESAURUS.COM

OTHER WORDS FROM engulf

en·gulf·ment, noun

Words nearby engulf

engraving, engross, engrossed bill, engrossing, engrossment, engulf, enhalo, enhance, enhanced oil recovery, enhanced radiation weapon, enhancer

Example sentences from the Web for engulf

Other schools have been shuttered because of attacks and threats stemming from the war that continues to engulf the country.

The West Made Lots of Promises to Afghan Girls, Now It’s Breaking Them |Heather Barr |October 20, 2014 |DAILY BEAST
Suddenly, the screen cuts to FLAMES which engulf the word "COWARDS?!?"

Cliven Bundy’s Brokeback Mountain Moment |Olivia Nuzzi |October 19, 2014 |DAILY BEAST
Using ethnicity for political ends is a dangerous game that will engulf South Sudan if not contained.

Preventing South Sudan’s Civil War |John Prendergast, Akshaya Kumar |December 24, 2013 |DAILY BEAST
The scale of devastation is now threatening to engulf the amount of resources deployed to control the situation.

A Closer Look at the Aftermath of Typhoon Haiyan | |November 11, 2013 |DAILY BEAST

This timing may have been a mercy, given the fate that was about to engulf Yugoslavia.

Danilo Kis, the Stylish Historian of Infamy |Anthony Paletta |June 19, 2013 |DAILY BEAST
She had slipped into the danger, that seemed now about to engulf her, on a gradual decline.

The Shield of Silence |Harriet T. Comstock
Mystics have the gift, in varying degree, of allowing their subconscious minds to engulf and enfold them.

Heart and Soul |Victor Mapes (AKA Maveric Post)
Over this body of this hero, rolls the horrible flood that is to engulf France.

The Son of Monte Christo |Jules Lermina
There was need of such a spiritual leader, for Unitarianism had threatened to engulf all New England.

The Story of Our Hymns |Ernest Edwin Ryden
Who shall say that, let loose in the crowded centers of population, it may not one day engulf us all?

Marse Henry (Vol. 1) |Henry Watterson

British Dictionary definitions for engulf

engulf

ingulf

/ (ɪnˈɡʌlf) /

verb (tr)

to immerse, plunge, bury, or swallow up

(often passive) to overwhelm engulfed by debts

Derived forms of engulf

engulfment, noun