German word

verschlingen

Pronunciation

IPA/fɛɐ̯ˈʃlɪŋən/

Meaning

  • verbgobble up

Example

Er verschlang sein Essen.

He gobbled up his food.

Illustration for verschlingen (gobble up)

More examples

Sie verschlang den Roman an einem Nachmittag.

She devoured the novel in one afternoon.

Core concept

A hungry mouth pulls food down in large gulps, and the same consuming motion applies to a book or a subject.

Common phrases

  • einen Roman verschlingen

    devour a novel

  • eine Serie verschlingen

    binge-watch a series

Similar words

schlingen: To gulp down food in large bites and at great speed.
verschlucken: To choke when something is accidentally swallowed.

Definition in German

etwas mit großem Appetit und hastig verzehren, auch bildlich für starkes Lesen oder Interesse

Word origin

Verschlingen combines German ver- with schlingen, a Germanic verb recorded as Old High German slingan, and its physical sense extends to eager reading.

Usage tips

  • Verschlingen is a strong verb: its past tense is verschlang and its past participle is verschlungen, not regular verschlingte.

Other meanings

  • swallowverb
  • polish offverb

Opposites

  • überfliegenskimverb

Related words

  • verschlungendevouredadjective

Word lists with this word