devour
Definitions
To eat something quickly and hungrily, swallowing it all
狼吞虎咽地吃；大口吃光
To consume or destroy something completely (of fire, time, etc.)
（火、时间等）吞噬，彻底消耗或毁灭
To take in eagerly with the eyes or mind; to read or watch greedily
如饥似渴地阅读/观看；贪婪地吸收
Root Breakdown
Root-derivedde- (down, completely) + vour (from Latin vorāre, devour) = 'to eat all the way down.' The prefix adds finality: not just eating, but eating until nothing is left. That sense of total consumption is why devour works as a metaphor — fire devours a forest, a reader devours a book — the object is consumed completely and hungrily.
Root vor still carries 9 more wordsCommon Collocations
- 1.devour a book如饥似渴地读书
- 2.devour food大口吃东西
- 3.be devoured by flames被火焰吞噬
- 4.devour eagerly贪婪地吞食
Example Sentences
- 1.
The children were so hungry they devoured the whole pizza in minutes.
- 2.
Flames quickly devoured the old wooden barn.
- 3.
She devours mystery novels, often finishing one in a single night.
- 4.
The shark devoured its prey in a single, violent bite.
Synonym Comparison
- devour — eat quickly and completely, with hunger or greed; vivid, often figurative
- eat — the plain, neutral word, no emotion implied
- gobble — eat fast and noisily, slightly childish/comic in tone
- consume — formal/technical; covers using up anything (food, fuel, resources)
- gorge — eat until uncomfortably full, usually 'gorge oneself on'