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To drink in; to absorb; to suck or take in; to receive as by drinking; as, a person imbibes drink, or a sponge imbibes moisture.

One who, or that which, imbibes.

To suck up; to drink in; to imbibe; as a sponge or as the lacteals of the body. Bacon.

Having power, capacity, or tendency to absorb or imbibe. E. Darwin.

springs. Combined with lime it constitutes limestone, or common marble and chalk. Plants imbibe it for their nutrition and growth, the carbon being retained and the oxygen given out. -- Carbonic oxide (Chem.), a colorless gas, CO, of a light odor, called more correctly carbon monoxide. It is almost the only definitel…

To swallow anything liquid, for quenching thirst or other purpose; to imbibe; to receive or partake of, as if in satisfaction of thirst; as, to drink from a spring. Gird thyself, and serve me, till have eaten and drunken; and afterward thou shalt eat and drink. Luke xvii. 8. He shall drink of the wrath the Almighty. Jo…

To imbibe. [Obs.] Skelton.

o full cloth. Fuller's earth, a variety of clay, used in scouring and cleansing cloth, to imbibe grease. -- Fuller's herb (Bot.), the soapwort (Saponaria officinalis), formerly used to remove stains from cloth. -- Fuller's thistle or weed (Bot.), the teasel (Dipsacus fullonum) whose burs are used by fullers in dressi…

in; to pour in drop by drop; hence, to impart gradually; to infuse slowly; to cause to be imbibed. That starlight dews All silently their tears of love instill. Byron. How hast thou instilled Thy malice into thousands. Milton.

A quantity of wood ashes, through which water passes, and thus imbibes the alkali.

To absorb again; to draw in, or imbibe, again what has been effused, extravasated, or thrown off; to swallow up again; as, to reabsorb chyle, lymph, etc.; -- used esp. of fluids.

To drink or imbibe in small quantities; especially, to take in with the lips in small quantities, as a liquid; as, to sip tea. "Every herb that sips the dew." Milton.

To cause or suffer to lie in a fluid till the substance has imbibed what it can contain; to macerate in water or other liquid; to steep, as for the purpose of softening or freshening; as, to soak cloth; to soak bread; to soak salt meat, salt fish, or the like.

To draw in, or imbibe, by any process resembles sucking; to inhale; to absorb; as, to suck in air; the roots of plants suck water from the ground.

To cause to pass from to another; to cause to be instilled or imbibed; as, to transfuse a spirit of patriotism into a man; to transfuse a love of letters. Into thee such virtue and grace Immense I have transfused. Milton.

To grow, as plants, by nutriment imbibed by means of roots and leaves; to start into growth; to sprout; to germinate. See dying vegetables life sustain, See life dissolving vegetate again. Pope.