gorge 1 of 2

gorge

2 of 2

verb

1
as in to stuff
to fill with food to capacity we gorged ourselves on the four pies Aunt Martha had brought for Thanksgiving

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

2
as in to feast
to eat greedily or to excess the kids began gorging on Halloween candy the minute they got back from trick-or-treating

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

3
as in to devour
to swallow or eat greedily the ravenous dogs furiously gorged the scraps of meat

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Synonym Chooser

How is the word gorge different from other verbs like it?

Some common synonyms of gorge are cloy, glut, pall, sate, satiate, and surfeit. While all these words mean "to fill to repletion," gorge suggests glutting to the point of bursting or choking.

gorged themselves with chocolate

When can cloy be used instead of gorge?

The words cloy and gorge can be used in similar contexts, but cloy stresses the disgust or boredom resulting from such surfeiting.

sentimental pictures that cloy after a while

When might glut be a better fit than gorge?

Although the words glut and gorge have much in common, glut implies excess in feeding or supplying.

a market glutted with diet books

Where would pall be a reasonable alternative to gorge?

While in some cases nearly identical to gorge, pall emphasizes the loss of ability to stimulate interest or appetite.

a life of leisure eventually begins to pall

How do satiate and sate relate to one another, in the sense of gorge?

Both satiate and sate may sometimes imply only complete satisfaction but more often suggest repletion that has destroyed interest or desire.

years of globe-trotting had satiated their interest in travel
readers were sated with sensationalistic stories

When could surfeit be used to replace gorge?

While the synonyms surfeit and gorge are close in meaning, surfeit implies a nauseating repletion.

surfeited themselves with junk food

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of gorge
Noun
In 2021, more than 200 people died after part of a glacier collapsed in Uttarakhand, carrying a deadly mixture of ice, rock and water that tore through a mountain gorge and crashed through a dam. Kathleen Magramo and Esha Mitra, CNN, 4 Mar. 2025 Flooding in the Pigeon River gorge in Haywood County washed away over 1 mile of I-40's eastbound lanes in late September. Democrat-Gazette Staff From Wire Reports, arkansasonline.com, 1 Mar. 2025
Verb
Here’s City writer, Sam Lee, who has gorged and feasted upon trophies galore in recent years, while the rest of us dine on scraps (or the Sela Cup, in my case). George Caulkin, The Athletic, 8 Jan. 2025 Here are a few reasons why allowing birds to gorge on bird seed can be a problem: A high-traffic bird feeder can spread diseases. Brandee Gruener, Southern Living, 5 Dec. 2024 See All Example Sentences for gorge
Recent Examples of Synonyms for gorge
Noun
  • Smallmouths are also impacting rainbow and brown trout, two other non-natives that are managed closely in the canyon.
    Dac Collins, Outdoor Life, 13 Mar. 2025
  • With its warm wood planking, plentiful resting areas, and plantings of long, waving grasses, the park, no matter how crowded, feels like a calm canyon snaking through crumbling tenements and monumental skyscrapers, offering occasional glimpses of the Hudson River beyond.
    News Desk, Artforum, 13 Mar. 2025
Verb
  • The impressive menu featured soft tacos stuffed with lentils and was followed by a ring of sunchokes, briefly in season, interspersed with radish and fennel; as well as maitake mushrooms with a vegetariandemiglace broth.
    Liza B. Zimmerman, Forbes, 11 Mar. 2025
  • There’s grizzled guys like the proprietor of Mines and Memories, a storefront dedicated to preserving the history of the town’s former economic engine, which stuffed with everything from B&W photos to hardhats donated by families that have lived in Creede for generations.
    Lauren Wissot, IndieWire, 10 Mar. 2025
Verb
  • Millions of birds visit the lake each year to feast on brine flies—more on that below.
    Maya Silver, Outside Online, 10 Mar. 2025
  • Torti is the resort's pool and beach bar, where diners can feast on bento boxes and sushi.
    Jason Chau, Travel + Leisure, 9 Mar. 2025
Verb
  • Welcome to The Shark Tank – also known as Rick Case Arena -- where NSU’s opponents get swarmed upon and devoured.
    Walter Villa, Miami Herald, 7 Mar. 2025
  • Now, though, astronomers have a better sense of where to hunt for any X-ray, radio, or visible-light signatures that are the telltale signs of an invisible black hole that's devouring everything nearby.
    Nell Greenfieldboyce, NPR, 6 Mar. 2025
Noun
  • If reaching a safe shelter is not possible, either crouch down in your car and cover your head, or leave your vehicle and seek refuge in a low-lying area like a ditch or ravine.
    NC Weather Bot, Charlotte Observer, 16 Mar. 2025
  • If no alternative exists, set up camp in a valley, ravine, or other low-lying areas.
    Southern California Weather Report, Orange County Register, 13 Mar. 2025
Verb
  • Their relevance also sate beyond being used as money.
    Robyn Mowatt, Essence, 21 Jan. 2025
  • The 1980s brought a new wave of bigger-budget period, sci-fi and fantasy films — Das Boot, The Name of the Rose, The Neverending Story — and crime stories moved to television, where popular serial formats like Tatort and Polizeiruf 110 sated the audience’s appetite for murder and mayhem.
    Scott Roxborough, The Hollywood Reporter, 13 Feb. 2025
Verb
  • Lack of sleep is known to increase hunger hormones (like ghrelin) and decrease satiety hormones, like leptin, which can cause users to overeat, undermining how GLP-1s suppress appetite.
    Lauryn Higgins, Flow Space, 6 Mar. 2025
  • This can be challenging, as there is a tendency to overeat in the evenings, especially as the breaking of the fast is often a family event with lots of delicious foods.
    Devinder Bains, Vogue, 28 Feb. 2025
Verb
  • The pope suffered a number of respiratory complications, such as inhaling some vomit that led to aspiration and required noninvasive mechanical ventilation.
    Mark Davis, Newsweek, 16 Mar. 2025
  • When ingested or inhaled, these microplastics can release these chemicals into the body, potentially leading to adverse health effects.
    Sheah Rarback, Miami Herald, 13 Mar. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Gorge.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/gorge. Accessed 23 Mar. 2025.

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