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indulge definition

in·dulge (in dulj′)

transitive verb indulged -·dulged′, indulging -·dulg′·ing

  1. to yield to or satisfy (a desire); give oneself up to to indulge a craving for sweets
  2. to gratify the wishes of; be very lenient with; humor
  3. Archaic to grant as a kindness, favor, or privilege

Etymology: L indulgere, to be kind to, yield to < in- + base prob. akin to Gr dolichos, long & Goth tulgus, firm

intransitive verb

to give way to one's own desires; indulge oneself (in something)

Related Forms:

Webster's New World College Dictionary Copyright © 2005 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

indulge Synonyms

indulge

v.

  1. To humor

    pamper, spoil, coddle; see humor, pamper.

  2. To give way to

    yield to, gratify, revel, luxuriate; see entertain 1, satisfy 1. See syn. study at humor.


Webster's New World Roget's A-Z Thesaurus Copyright © 1999 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

indulge Usage Examples

Object

  • yourselves: Just the two of you: Indulge yourselves at the spa with a La Prairie " caviar " treatment.

Modifying Another Word

  • occasionally: Frightening for all of us who occasionally indulge in on-line hyperbole.

Preposition: in

  • speculation: To answer this we must indulge in some plausible speculation.
indulge usage examples (more)

The word usage examples above have been gathered from various sources to reflect current and historical usage. They do not represent the opinions of YourDictionary.com.

indulge quotes

Errors look so very ugly in persons of small meansöone feels they are taking quite a liberty in going astray; whereas people of fortunemay naturally indulgeina few delinquencies.

-Eliot, George pseudonym of  MaryAnn Evans

Nous sommes tous oblige¤  s, pour rendre la re¤  alite¤ supportable, d'entretenir en nous quelques petites folies. We must all indulge in a few follies if we are to make reality bearable.

-Proust, Marcel

   Vengeance is a personal reaction. But not one that government can indulge in.

-Reno,Janet

indulge quotes (more)

Webster's New World Dictionary of Quotations Copyright © 2005 by Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved. Published by Wiley, Hoboken, NJ. Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

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"indulge." Webster's New World College Dictionary. 2009

  • Your Dictionary. 4 July 2009
  • <www.yourdictionary.com/indulge>

APA Style

indulge. (2009). In Webster's New World College Dictionary

  • Retrieved July 4th, 2009, from www.yourdictionary.com/indulge

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