absorb (v.)

"to drink in, suck up, take in by absorption," early 15c., from Old French absorbir, assorbir (13c., Modern French absorber), from Latin absorbere "to swallow up, devour," from ab "off, away from" (see ab-) + sorbere "suck in," from PIE root *srebh- "to suck, absorb" (source also of Armenian arbi "I drank," Greek rhopheo "to sup greedily up, gulp down," Lithuanian srebiu, srėbti "to drink greedily"). Figurative meaning "to completely grip (one's) attention" is from 1763.

also from early 15c.

Entries linking to absorb

absorbed (adj.)

"engrossed mentally," 1760, past-participle adjective in a figurative sense from absorb (v.). Related: Absorbedly.

absorbent (adj.)

"absorbing or capable of absorbing," 1718, from Latin absorbentem (nominative absorbens) "a drinking," present participle of absorbere "swallow up" (see absorb). Also from 1718 as a noun, "anything which absorbs."

See all related words (8) >

Trends of absorb

adapted from books.google.com/ngrams/. Ngrams are probably unreliable.

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engross

c. 1400, "to buy up the whole stock of" (in Anglo-French from c. 1300), from Old French en gros "in bulk, in a large quantity, at wholesale," as opposed to en detail. See gross. Figurative sense of "absorb the whole attention" is first attested 1709. A parallel engross, meaning "

engage

early 15c., engagen, "to pledge" (something, as security for payment), from Old French engagier "bind (by promise or oath), pledge; pawn" (12c.), from phrase en gage "under pledge," from en "in" (see en- (1)) + gage "pledge," through Frankish from Proto-Germanic *wadiare "pledge"

occupy

mid-14c., occupien, "to take possession of and retain or keep," also "to take up space or room or time; employ (someone)," irregularly borrowed from Old French ocuper, occuper "occupy (a person or place), hold, seize" (13c.) or directly from Latin occupare "take over, seize, take

imbue

early 15c., "to keep wet; to soak, saturate;" also figuratively "to cause to absorb" (feelings, opinions, etc.), from Latin...

assimilate

early 15c., in physiology, "absorb into and make part of the body," from Latin assimilatus, past participle of assimilare...

nutrition

1550s, "act or process by which organisms absorb their proper food into their systems and build it into living tissue," from...

attract

early 15c., attracten, "draw (objects or persons) to oneself," also a medical term for the body's tendency to absorb fluids...

overtake

"to come up to, catch up with, catch in pursuit," early 13c., from over- + take (v.). According to OED (1989), originally "the running down and catching of a fugitive or beast of chase"; the editors find the sense of over- in this word "not so clear." The meaning "take by surpris

rivet

c. 1300, "cinch on a nail;" c. 1400, "short metal pin or bolt inserted through a hole at the junction of two or more metal pieces," the point then hammered broad to hold them together; from Old French rivet "nail, rivet," from river "to clench, fix, fasten," which is of uncertain

learn

Old English leornian "to get knowledge, be cultivated; study, read, think about," from Proto-Germanic *lisnojanan (cognates: Old Frisian lernia, Middle Dutch leeren, Dutch leren, Old High German lernen, German lernen "to learn," Gothic lais "I know"), with a base sense of "to fol

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updated on October 13, 2021

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Dictionary entries near absorb

absoluteness

absolution

absolutism

absolutist

absolve

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absorbed

absorbency

absorbent

absorbing

absorption