indulge Hear it!

indulge Definition

in·dulge (in dulj′)

transitive verb -·dulged′, -·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)

indulge Related Forms
in·dulg′er noun
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.

indulge Usage Examples

Object

  • yourselves: Just the two of you: Indulge yourselves at the spa with a La Prairie " caviar " treatment.
  • passion: Buying stock in Glenmorangie or Diageo is a pretty arid way of indulging a passion for the water of life.
  • fantasy: Songs indulging similar fantasies have the advantage of being always to hand.
  • taste: Shop, indulge, taste, smell, relax and pamper.
  • nature: But do not use your freedom to indulge the sinful nature; rather serve one another in love.
  • sense: Whenever you need to indulge the senses and escape the demands of everyday life there can be only one choice.

Modifying Another Word

  • freely: In the fair and after it the old man indulged freely in ardent spirits, and soon after reaching home went to bed.
  • occasionally: Frightening for all of us who occasionally indulge in on-line hyperbole.
  • over: Molly coddle: To molly coddle someone or some pet is to really fuss over them; to over indulge them.
  • perhaps: St Petersburg has an inspiring cafe, bar and music scene, so perhaps indulge.
  • regularly: An avid reader, she also regularly indulges in retail therapy.
  • sometimes: The frenzied activity in which he indulges sometimes gives the false impression of being dynamic.

Preposition: in

  • orgy: No wonder he was always indulging in orgies of forbidden words.
  • speculation: To answer this we must indulge in some plausible speculation.
  • pastime: We were given long reading lists, and I was able to indulge in a favorite pastime - losing myself in a book.
  • nostalgia: Knowhere Guide to Coventry A fun site with chat and message boards where you can exchange comments and opinions or just indulge in nostalgia.
  • cuisine: Relax at the end of the day in our charming hotels and indulge in fine cuisine.
  • fantasy: This is a glorious piece of theater in which workers on a toy doll assembly line indulge in escapist fantasy.
indulge Quotes

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

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

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

—Reno,Janet