engross
verb
Simple meaning
To completely engage the attention of.
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
ehngrohsSay the bold part a little louder.
IPA pronunciation (US)
ɛnˈɡɹoʊs
IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.
Definition
Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.
verb
To completely engage the attention of.
“She seems to be completely engrossed in that book.”
To write (a document) in large, aesthetic, and legible lettering; to make a finalized copy of.
To monopolize; to concentrate (something) in the single possession of someone, especially unfairly.
To make gross, thick, or large; to thicken; to increase in bulk or quantity.
To buy up wholesale, especially to buy the whole supply of (a commodity etc.).
To thicken; to condense.
Word at a Glance
- Difficulty
- C2 · Proficient (estimated)
- Typical Use
- Rare
Word Aura™
How this word commonly comes across.
Aura for this meaning
This meaning: To completely engage the attention of.
Used this way, engross is a common word that usually carries little praise or criticism of its own. It usually sounds natural in a wide range of settings.
“She seems to be completely engrossed in that book.”
- Emotional tone
- Neutral
- Formality
- Neutral
- Intensity
- Not strongly marked
- How common
- Common
- Connotation
- No strong connotation
- Usage feel
- Neutral and straightforward
Usage note
It most often appears in the pattern “engross in …”, which is worth copying when you use it.
Natural pattern: engross in …
Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.
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Common Patterns and Combinations
How this word naturally appears with others.
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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API (CC BY-SA 3.0). Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.