wreathe

verb

wreathed; wreathing

transitive verb

1
a
: to shape into a wreath
c
: to cause to coil about something
2
: to twist or contort so as to show folds or creases
3
: to encircle or adorn with or as if with a wreath

intransitive verb

1
: to twist in coils : writhe
2
a
: to take on the shape of a wreath
b
: to move or extend in circles or spirals

Examples of wreathe in a Sentence

decided to wreathe the grapevines into a beribboned swag to give the room the “country look” wreathed small flowers into the design for the wallpaper
Recent Examples on the Web Air Traffic Control had cleared both planes, despite the airport being wreathed in fog. Julia Buckley, CNN, 16 Mar. 2023 The deal itself was wreathed in controversy. Rory Smith, New York Times, 24 Feb. 2023 And if either of them ever forgets, the words are always with them, in colorful tattoos that wreathe their arms in foreign languages. Debra Kamin, WSJ, 23 Feb. 2022 Many likely formed alongside their parent bodies, sprouting out of the swirling disk of gas and dust that wreathes planets in their infancy. Katherine J. Wu, Smithsonian Magazine, 11 Mar. 2020 On Friday night, the largest crowds ever to gather in recent Iraqi history came to protest peacefully, but noisily, against the government, wreathing entire buildings in flags. Alissa J. Rubin, New York Times, 4 Nov. 2019 As rescuers tried to move the plane off him, one lit a match for a cigarette, igniting gas fumes and wreathing the wreckage in flame. New York Times, 11 Dec. 2019 From there, the GRR1 heads northwest into a dense and impossibly wet woodland wreathed in arborescent ferns and carpeted with beds of moss two feet deep. Rowan Moore Gerety, New York Times, 28 Dec. 2019 In November, the district’s center — where the market, a sprawling park, a library, and shopping malls are clustered — was wreathed in tear gas for five consecutive days as police fought running battles with anti-government protesters. Hillary Leung / Hong Kong, Time, 6 Dec. 2019

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'wreathe.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

wreath

First Known Use

1530, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1a

Time Traveler
The first known use of wreathe was in 1530

Dictionary Entries Near wreathe

Cite this Entry

“Wreathe.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/wreathe. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

wreathe

verb
wreathed; wreathing
1
: to form into a wreath
2
: to crown, decorate, or cover with or as if with a wreath
ivy wreathed the pole

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