absorb
Definitions
To soak up or take in a liquid, gas, energy, etc.
吸收（液体、气体、能量等）
To take in and understand information
理解，消化（信息）
To fully occupy someone's attention or interest
使全神贯注，吸引
To take in and incorporate something smaller (a cost, a company, a group)
并入，消化（成本、公司等）
Root Breakdown
Root-derivedab- (in, completely) + sorb (suck in) = to suck something fully in. The literal sponge image (absorb water) spreads into figurative uses that all share it: the mind absorbs information, a task absorbs your attention, a big firm absorbs a small one, a budget absorbs extra costs.
Root sorb still carries 4 more wordsUsage Guide
The attention sense usually appears as the past participle 'absorbed in': absorbed in her work, absorbed in thought. The cost/company sense ('absorb the loss,' 'absorb a subsidiary') is common in business and means to take on or swallow up without passing the impact along. Note the spelling: verb keeps -b, but the noun is absorption (-p).
Example Sentences
- 1.
Plants absorb water and nutrients through their roots.
- 2.
Children absorb new languages remarkably quickly.
- 3.
She was so absorbed in the book that she missed her stop.
- 4.
The larger firm absorbed two of its struggling rivals.
Easily Confused
absorb vs adsorb — not a typo: in chemistry, absorb means a substance is taken INTO another (a sponge holds water inside it), while adsorb means molecules stick to the SURFACE only. In everyday English you almost always want absorb.
Synonym Comparison
- absorb — take in and hold inside; soak up (water, facts, attention)
- soak up — informal, vivid version of absorb a liquid or experience
- take in — broad and casual: take in information, take in a sight
- assimilate — absorb and fully integrate (assimilate facts, assimilate immigrants)
- digest — absorb and process mentally over time (digest a complex report)