consume

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA ^(key): /kənˈsjuːm/, SAMPA: /k@n"sju:m/
• (US) enPR: kən-so͞om, IPA ^(key): /kənˈsuːm/, SAMPA: /k@n"su:m/

• Audio (US)

  (file)

Verb

Plain form consume

Third-person singular consumes

Past tense consumed

Past participle consumed

Present participle consuming

1. (transitive) If you consume energy, resources, time, etc., you use it and it is no longer available.

   Only 10% of the energy consumed by a light bulb produces usable light.

   Most of our leisure time is consumed by TV.

2. (transitive) If you consume alcohol, food, etc., you eat or drink it.

   They discovered that about half the calories consumed by an adult bat are used up during flight.

   Pregnant women should not consume alcohol.

   Many people do not consume adequate amounts of food for good health.

3. (transitive) If a fire consumes something, it burns it until it's gone.

   In 1988 a fire consumed about half of the park's trees.

4. (transitive) If you are consumed by a thought or idea, you cannot think about anything else.

   Our minds were consumed by the things we saw and dreamed of having.

Antonyms

• produce

Related words

• consumer
• consuming
• consumption
• consumerism
• consumable