Engorging

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. To take in an abundance of food or substances, causing a significant increase in bulk or volume To partake in excessive consumption, leading to a dramatic state of expansion To experience considerable growth or fullness due to voracious intake of nutrients or materials
2. To consume an excessive quantity of food or drink, resulting in a swollen or bloated state
3. To fill oneself greedily or to capacity that leads to an enlarged or distended form

Etymology: "Engorging" is the present participle of "engorge," which came into English from French "engorger," itself descended from Old French "engorgier." The French verb is built on "gorge," meaning throat or gullet, so the core image is of something being crammed down the throat. The "en-" prefix works as an intensifier and marks the action as going into a container, so to engorge originally meant to stuff something into a narrow passage until it is full. That physical sense of blocking or swelling is still visible in the medical use of "engorged," meaning swollen with blood or fluid, which connects directly to the throat-filling image. The sense of greedy eating, which is the one this verb is now used for, grows naturally from the same idea: a person who gorges themselves fills their throat past comfort.

Synonyms: swelling, inflating, filling, stuffing, overindulging

Antonyms: deflating, emptying, releasing, diminishing, depleting