indulge
Etymology

From Latin indulgeō.

Pronunciation
  • IPA: /ɪnˈdʌld͡ʒ/
Verb

indulge (indulges, present participle indulging; simple past and past participle indulged)

  1. (intransitive, often followed by "in"): To yield to a temptation or desire.
    He looked at the chocolate but didn't indulge.
    I indulged in drinking on the weekend.
  2. (transitive) To satisfy the wishes or whims of.
    Grandma indulges the kids with sweets.
    I love to indulge myself with beautiful clothes.
    • August 30, 1706, Francis Atterbury, a sermon preach'd in the Cathedral Church of St. Paul, at the funeral of Mr. Tho. Bennet
      Hope in another life implies that we indulge ourselves in the gratifications of this very sparingly.
  3. To give way to (a habit or temptation); to not oppose or restrain.
    to indulge sloth, pride, selfishness, or inclinations
  4. To grant an extension to the deadline of a payment.
  5. To grant as by favour; to bestow in concession, or in compliance with a wish or request.
    • 1678, Antiquitates Christianæ: Or, the History of the Life and Death of the Holy Jesus: […], London: […] E. Flesher, and R. Norton, for R[ichard] Royston, […], →OCLC ↗:
      persuading us that something must be indulged to public manners
    • 1728, [Alexander Pope], “(please specify the page)”, in The Dunciad. An Heroic Poem. […], Dublin, London: […] A. Dodd, →OCLC ↗:
      Yet, yet a moment, one dim ray of light / Indulge, dread Chaos, and eternal Night!
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