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Words, grammatical forms and meanings linked to the ontology.

embrace en · NOUN

Pronunciation

  • (UK) audio
  • (Australia) audio
  • (General-American) audio
  • /ɛmˈbɹes/ (Multicultural-London-English)
  • /ɛmˈbɹeɪs/
  • /ɪmˈbɹeɪs/

Etymology

The verb is derived from Middle English embracen (“to clasp in one's arms, embrace; to reach out eagerly for, welcome; to enfold, entwine; to ensnare, entangle; to twist, wrap around; to gird, put on; to lace; to be in or put into bonds; to put a shield on the arm; to grasp (a shield or spear); to acquire, take hold of; to receive; to undertake; to affect, influence; to incite; to unlawfully influence a jury; to surround; to conceal, cover; to shelter; to protect; to comfort; to comprehend, understand”) [and other forms], from Old French embracer, embracier (“to kiss”) (modern French embrasser (“to kiss; (dated) to embrace, hug”)), from Late Latin *imbracchiāre, from in- (prefix meaning ‘in, inside, within’)) + bracchium (“arm”). The English word is analysable as em- + brace. The noun is derived from the verb.

Meanings

  1. An act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest; a hug.
    • [E]yes, looke your laſt, / Armes take your laſt embrace: and lips, O you / The doores of breath, ſeale with a righteous kiſſe / A dateleſſe bargain to ingroſſing death: […] c. 1591–1595 (date written), [William Shakespeare], […] Romeo and Iuliet. […] (Second Quarto), London: […] Thomas Creede, for Cuthbert Burby, […], published 1599, →OCLC, [Act V, scene iii]:
    • […] And tears are on the mother’s face, ⁠As parting with a long embrace She enters other realms of love; […] 1850, [Alfred, Lord Tennyson], “Canto XXXIX”, in In Memoriam, London: Edward Moxon, […], →OCLC, page 60:
    • [A] delighted shout from the children swung him toward the door again. His sister, Mrs. Gerard, stood there in carriage gown and sables, radiant with surprise. "Phil! You! Exactly like you, Philip, to come strolling in from the antipodes—dear fellow!" recovering from the fraternal embrace and holding both lapels of his coat in her gloved hands. 1907 August, Robert W[illiam] Chambers, “His Own People”, in The Younger Set, New York, N.Y.: D. Appleton & Company, →OCLC, page 15:
    • That Gentleman I mean to make the model of my Fortunes, and in his chaſt imbraces keep alive the memory of my loſt lovely Loveleſe: he is ſomewhat like him too. c. 1613–1616, Francis Beaumont, John Fletcher, “The Scornful Lady, a Comedy”, in Fifty Comedies and Tragedies. […], [part 1], London: […] J[ohn] Macock [and H. Hills], for John Martyn, Henry Herringman, and Richard Marriot, published 1679, →OCLC, Act III, scene i, page 72, column 1:
    • [A] long and affectionate embrace supplied the place of language in bidding each other adieu; […] 1803 (date written), [Jane Austen], chapter XIII, in Northanger Abbey; published in Northanger Abbey: And Persuasion. […], volume II, London: John Murray, […], 20 December 1817 (indicated as 1818), →OCLC, pages 269–270:
  2. (figuratively) An enclosure partially or fully surrounding someone or something.
    • When he reached the ridge the outlying fog crept across the summit, caught him in its embrace, and wrapped him from her gaze. 1882, Bret Harte, “Flip: A California Romance. Chapter II.”, in Flip; and Found at Blazing Star, Boston, Mass.; New York, N.Y.: Houghton, Mifflin and Company […], →OCLC, page 44:
    • We were now within the embrace of a broad bay flanked on either hand by a low promontory. 1896, H[erbert] G[eorge] Wells, “The Evil-looking Boatmen”, in The Island of Doctor Moreau (Heinemann’s Colonial Library of Popular Fiction; 52), London: William Heinemann, →OCLC; republished as The Island of Doctor Moreau: A Possibility, New York, N.Y.: Stone & Kimball, 1896, →OCLC, page 48:
  3. (figuratively) Full acceptance (of something).
    • It then occurred to Barbara, and recurred more strongly after she had learned of Ricky's marriage and her sale of the school in England, her eager embrace of Islam, and the total handing over of her lot to Joe Ramdez, that there had been no secret state of mind in Ricky. 1965, Muriel Spark, “The Passionate Pilgrims”, in The Mandelbaum Gate, London: Macmillan, →OCLC; The Mandelbaum Gate (A Borzoi Book), 1st American edition, New York, N.Y.: Alfred A. Knopf, 1965, →OCLC, part 2, pages 293–294:
    • And it was the white blood which sent him to the minister, which rising in him for the last and final time, sent him against all reason and all reality, into the embrace of a chimera, a blind faith in something read in a printed Book. 1932, William Faulkner, chapter 19, in Light in August, [New York, N.Y.]: Harrison Smith & Robert Haas, →OCLC; republished London: Chatto & Windus, 1933, →OCLC, pages 424–425:
  4. (figuratively) An act of enfolding or including.
    • In India men are enjoined to be fully awake to the fact that they are in the closest relation to things around them, body and soul, and that they are to hail the morning sun, the flowing water, the fruitful earth, as the manifestation of the same living truth which holds them in its embrace. 1913 November, Rabindranath Tagore, “The Relation of the Individual to the Universe”, in Sādhanā: The Realisation of Life, New York, N.Y.: The Macmillan Company, →OCLC, page 8:

Forms

SpellingFeaturesLabelsSource
embraces Number=Plur lexicographic

Deriveds

marital embrace · half-embrace · deadly embrace

Synonyms

embracement (all senses)

Translations (126)

et kalli (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · ka ჩახუტება (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · be абні́мкі (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · te కౌగిలింత (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · sh ȍbuhvāt (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · fr embrassement (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · el αγκαλιά (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · hi आग़ोश (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · az qucaq (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · be абды́мкі (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · cs objetí (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · km អាលិង្គន (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · hi आलिंगन (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · ru объя́тия (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · sh zȁgrljāj (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · tt кочак (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · cmn 擁抱 /拥抱 (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · tr kucak (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · mk прегратка (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · yi אומאַרמונג (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · pl przytulenie (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · te ఆలింగనము (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · ru объя́тие (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · sq përqafim (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · fr accolade (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · sv kram (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · sh о̏бухва̄т (enclosure partially or fully surrounding someone or something) · fr étreinte (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · as সাবট (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · fa-ira آغوش (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · fa-ira بَغَل (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · osx anafang (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · la complexus (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · nl knuffelen (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · fi syleily (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · uz quchoq (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · sh ȍbuhvāt (enclosure partially or fully surrounding someone or something) · bg обя́тия (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · ky кучак (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · pt abraço (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · et embus (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · ur آغوش (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · da knus (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · hy գրկախառնություն (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · tl yakap (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · pl objęcie (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · ml പുണരൽ (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · uk обійма́ння (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · mk прегрнување (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · sh о̏бухва̄т (act of enfolding or including) · yi אַרומנעם (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · ur بَغَل گِیری (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · ml ആലിംഗനം (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · fa-ira بَغَل گیری (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · th การกอด (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · bg прегръ́дка (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · be абдо́ймы (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · nl omhelzing (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · ga cuach (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · th กอด (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · sh о̏бухва̄т (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · tg бағал (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · tg оғуш (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · ar اِحْتِضَان (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · sh за̏грља̄ј (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · fi halaus (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · ml കെട്ടിപ്പിടുത്തം (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · be абня́цьце (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · nl knuffel (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · ar مُعَانَقَة (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · vi sự ôm (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · lv apskāviens (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · pl uścisk (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · et kallistus (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · ca abraçada (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · sl objem (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · nb klem (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · nl omarming (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · kk құшақтау (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · bg прегръ́дка (enclosure partially or fully surrounding someone or something) · tr kucaklama (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · hy գրկում (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · ar عِنَاق (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · kk құшақ (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · lt apkabinimas (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · da omfavnelse (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · uk об'я́ття (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · de Umarmung (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · ru обнима́ние (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · mk гушка (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · ar ضَمَّة (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · fi hali (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · fr câlin (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · ky кучактоо (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · ja 抱擁 (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · it abbraccio (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · sv omfamning (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · be абня́цце (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · ang clypping (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · ba ҡосаҡ (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · el αγκάλιασμα (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · ga barróg (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · mt tgħanniqa (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · is knús (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · da kram (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · uk обі́йми (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · gd ioma-ghlacadh (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · km ការឱបរឹត (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · sk objatie (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · ar حَضْن (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · hu ölelés (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · mn тэврэлт (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · ug قۇچاق (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · is faðmlag (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · he חיבוק \ חִבּוּק (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · ko 포옹 (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · tk gujak (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · as আঁকোৱাল (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · fr embrassade (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · ja ハグ (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · pl obejmowanie (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · ro îmbrățișare (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · sh ȍbuhvāt (act of enfolding or including) · af omhels (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · es abrazo (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug) · tr sarılma (act of putting arms around someone and bringing the person close to the chest — see also hug)

wikipedia: Bartolomeo Cesi · wikipedia: Uffizi Gallery

embrace en · VERB

Pronunciation

  • (UK) audio
  • (Australia) audio
  • (General-American) audio
  • /ɛmˈbɹes/ (Multicultural-London-English)
  • /ɛmˈbɹeɪs/
  • /ɪmˈbɹeɪs/

Etymology

The verb is derived from Middle English embracen (“to clasp in one's arms, embrace; to reach out eagerly for, welcome; to enfold, entwine; to ensnare, entangle; to twist, wrap around; to gird, put on; to lace; to be in or put into bonds; to put a shield on the arm; to grasp (a shield or spear); to acquire, take hold of; to receive; to undertake; to affect, influence; to incite; to unlawfully influence a jury; to surround; to conceal, cover; to shelter; to protect; to comfort; to comprehend, understand”) [and other forms], from Old French embracer, embracier (“to kiss”) (modern French embrasser (“to kiss; (dated) to embrace, hug”)), from Late Latin *imbracchiāre, from in- (prefix meaning ‘in, inside, within’)) + bracchium (“arm”). The English word is analysable as em- + brace. The noun is derived from the verb.

Meanings

  1. (transitive) To clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection; to take in the arms; to hug.
    • I will imbrace him with a ſouldiour's arme, / That he ſhall ſhrinke vnder my curteſie, […] c. 1597 (date written), [William Shakespeare], The History of Henrie the Fourth; […], quarto edition, London: […] P[eter] S[hort] for Andrew Wise, […], published 1598, →OCLC, [Act V, scene ii]:
    • […] Love, though not wholly blind, as Poets wrong him, yet having but one eye, as being born an Archer aiming, and that eye not the quickeſt in this dark region here below, which is not Loves proper ſphere, partly out of the ſimplicity, and credulity which is native to him, often deceiv'd, imbraces and comforts him with theſe obvious and ſuborned ſtriplings, as if they were his Mothers own Sons, for ſo he thinks them, while they ſuttly keep themſelves moſt on his blind ſide. 1644, J[ohn] M[ilton], chapter VI, in The Doctrine or Discipline of Divorce: […], 2nd edition, London: [s.n.], →OCLC, book I, page 14:
    • We embrace to be embraced. We embrace our children to be folded in the arms of the future, to pass ourselves beyond death, to be transported. That is how it was when I embraced you, always. 1990, J[ohn] M[axwell] Coetzee, chapter 1, in Age of Iron, London: Secker and Warburg, →ISBN, page 5; republished London: Penguin Books, 2015, →ISBN:
    • She clapped her hands and laughed, and tried to touch his head; but being too little, laughed again, and stood on tiptoe to embrace him. Then she began to drag him, in her childish eagerness, towards the door; and he, nothing loth to go, accompanied her. 1843 December 19, Charles Dickens, “Stave Two. The First of the Three Spirits.”, in A Christmas Carol. […], London: Chapman & Hall, […], →OCLC, page 54:
    • Theſe lulld by Nightingales imbraceing ſlept, / And on thir naked limbs the flourie roof / Showrd Roſes, which the Morn, repair'd. 1667, John Milton, “Book IV”, in Paradise Lost. […], London: […] [Samuel Simmons], and are to be sold by Peter Parker […]; [a]nd by Robert Boulter […]; [a]nd Matthias Walker, […], →OCLC; republished as Paradise Lost in Ten Books: […], London: Basil Montagu Pickering […], 1873, →OCLC, lines 772–774:
    • Thou doſt reduce me when I err; thou ſtayeſt for me when I am dull; thou imbraceſt me when I return; thou teacheſt me when I am ignorant; […] 1686, [formerly attributed to Augustine of Hippo], “The Accusation of Man, and the Commendation and Praise of the Divine Mercy”, in [John Floyd], transl., The Meditations, Soliloquia, and Manual of the Glorious Doctor St. Augustine. Translated into English, London: Printed for Matthew Turner […], →OCLC, page 6:
    • There was no ambiguity in her relief and enthusiasm; she went up to him in a somewhat irresolute fashion, as if about to put out her hand; but they embraced instead, and stood for a moment yoked thus, absurdly relieved and delighted by the other’s presence. 1982, Lawrence Durrell, “Tu Duc Revisited”, in Constance: Or Solitary Practices: A Novel, London: Faber and Faber, →ISBN; republished New York, N.Y.: Viking Press, 1982, →ISBN, page 261:
    • There was no faynting faith in that Dogge, which when his Master by a mischaunce in hunting stumbled and fell toppling downe a deepe dytche beyng vnable to recouer of himselfe, the Dogge signifying his masters mishappe, reskue came, and he was hayled up by a rope, whom the Dogge seeying almost drawne up to the edge of the dytche, cheerefully saluted, leaping and skipping vpon his master as though he would haue imbraced hym, beying glad of his presence, whose longer absence he was lothe to lacke. 1576, Iohannes Caius [i.e., John Caius], “Dogges of a Course Kind Seruing for Many Necessary Uses, Called in Latine Canes Rustici, and First of the Shepherds Dogge, Called in Latine Canis Pastoralis”, in Abraham Fleming, transl., Of Englishe Dogges, the Diuersities, the Names, the Natures, and the Properties. […], imprinted at London: By [John Charlewood for] Rychard Johnes, […], →OCLC; republished London: Printed by A. Bradley, […], 1880, →OCLC, page 31:
    • And after the vprore was ceaſed, Paul called vnto him the diſciples, and imbraced them, & departed, for to go into Macedonia. 1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Acts 20:1, column 1:
  2. (figuratively, transitive) To seize (something) eagerly or with alacrity; to accept or take up with cordiality; to welcome.
    • Then she thought how, now, she would embrace again the faith she had abandoned, and walk again in the light from which, with Richard, she had so far fled. 1953, James Baldwin, “Elizabeth’s Prayer”, in Go Tell It on the Mountain (A Laurel Book), New York, N.Y.: Dell Publishing Co., published December 1985, →ISBN, part 2 (The Prayers of the Saints), page 186:
    • Thou hast shown me the means of revenge, and be assured I will embrace them. 1819 December 20 (indicated as 1820), Walter Scott, chapter XIII, in Ivanhoe; a Romance. […], volume II, Edinburgh: […] Archibald Constable and Co.; London: Hurst, Robinson, and Co. […], →OCLC, page 227:
    • Embrace any opportunities that may come your way.
    • Let Ignorance a little while now muſe / On what is ſaid, and let him not refuſe / Good counſel to imbrace, leſt he remain / Still Ignorant of what's the chiefeſt gain. 1678, John Bunyan, The Pilgrim’s Progress from This World, to That which is to Come: […], London: […] Nath[aniel] Ponder […], →OCLC, page 164:
    • The louer refused of his loue imbraceth death. [poem title] 1557, unknown, “The Louer Refused of His Loue Imbraceth Death”, in Henry Howard, Earl of Surrey et al., edited by Edward Arber, Tottel’s Miscellany. Songes and Sonettes […] (English Reprints; 24), London: [Edward Arber]; Muir & Paterson, printers, […], published 15 August 1870, →OCLC, page 168:
    • I take it your owne buſineſſe cals on you, / And you embrace the occaſion to depart. c. 1596–1598 (date written), W[illiam] Shakespeare, The Excellent History of the Merchant of Venice. […] (First Quarto), [London]: […] J[ames] Roberts [for Thomas Heyes], published 1600, →OCLC, [Act I, scene i]:
    • [I]f a Man can be perſuaded and fully aſſur'd of any thing for a Truth, without having examin'd, what is there that he may not imbrace for Truth; and if he has given himſelf up to believe a Lye, what means is there left to recover one who can be aſſur'd without examining. a. 1705, John Locke, “Of the Conduct of the Understanding”, in Posthumous Works of Mr. John Locke: […], London: Printed by W. B. for A[ugustus] and J[ohn] Churchill […], published 1706, →OCLC, §34, page 105:
    • Theſe all died in faith, not hauing received the promiſes, but hauing ſeene them a farre off, and were perſwaded of them, and embraced them, and confeſſed that they were ſtrangers and pilgrims on the earth. 1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Hebrews 11:13, column 1:
    • I wholeheartedly embrace the new legislation.
  3. (figuratively, transitive) To submit to; to undergo.
    • What I haue done my ſafety vrg'd me to: / And I embrace this fortune patiently, / Since not to be auoided it fals on me. c. 1597 (date written), [William Shakespeare], The History of Henrie the Fourth; […], quarto edition, London: […] P[eter] S[hort] for Andrew Wise, […], published 1598, →OCLC, [Act V, scene v]:
    • Faced with the most significant public health crisis in a century, the population has largely embraced the strict but essential government instructions on social distancing that have been carefully designed to protect lives and to curb the spread of COVID-19. 2020 April 22, Paul Stephen, “COVID-19: meet the railway heroes”, in Rail, page 40:
  4. (also, figuratively, transitive) To encircle; to enclose, to encompass.
    • But it was not this that conveyed the size of the steppe so much as the multiplicity of these nomadic encampments, cropping up wherever the eye rested, yet invariably separate by a mile or two from their neighbours. There were hundreds of them, and the sight, therefore, seemed to embrace hundreds of miles. 1937, Robert Byron, “Gumbad-i-Kabus (200 ft.), April 24th”, in The Road to Oxiana, London: Macmillan & Co., →OCLC, part V, page 228:
    • Low at his foot a ſpacious Plain is plac't, / Between the Mountain and the Stream embrac't: / Which ſhade and ſhelter from the Hill derives, / While the kind River Wealth and Beauty gives; […] 1642, John Denham, “Coopers Hill”, in Poems and Translations, with the Sophy. […], 4th edition, Printed by T. W. for H[enry] Herringman and sold by Jacob Tonson […], and Thomas Bennet […], published 1703, →OCLC, page 14:
  5. (figuratively, transitive) To enfold, to include (ideas, principles, etc.); to encompass.
    • Not that my ſong, in ſuch a ſcanty ſpace, / So large a Subject fully can embrace: […] 1697, Virgil, “The Second Book of the Georgics”, in John Dryden, transl., The Works of Virgil: Containing His Pastorals, Georgics, and Æneis. […], London: […] Jacob Tonson, […], →OCLC, page 73, lines 59–60:
    • Natural philosophy embraces many sciences.
    • The Man from Mars sat down again when Jill left. He did not pick up the picture book they had given him but simply waited in a fashion which may be described as "patient" only because human language does not embrace Martian attitudes. 1961, Robert A. Heinlein, chapter VIII, in Stranger in a Strange Land, New York: Avon, →OCLC, page 59:
  6. (obsolete, rare, transitive) To fasten on, as armour.
    • VVho ſeeing him from far ſo fierce to pricke, / His warlike armes about him gan embrace, / And in the reſt his ready ſpeare did ſticke; […] 1590, Edmund Spenser, “Book II, Canto I”, in The Faerie Queene. […], London: […] [John Wolfe] for William Ponsonbie, →OCLC, stanza 26, page 194:
  7. (figuratively, obsolete, transitive) To accept (someone) as a friend; to accept (someone's) help gladly.
    • He bears himſelfe more proudlier, / Euen to my perſon, then I thought he would / When firſt I did embrace him. c. 1608–1609 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedy of Coriolanus”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act IV, scene vii], page 25, column 1:
  8. (figuratively, obsolete, transitive) To attempt to influence (a court, jury, etc.) corruptly; to practise embracery.
    • The puniſhment for the perſon embracing is by fine and impriſonment; and, for the juror ſo embraced, if it be by taking money, the puniſhment is (by divers ſtatutes of the reign of Edward III) perpetual infamy, impriſonment for a year, and forfeiture of the tenfold value. 1769, William Blackstone, “Of Offences against Public Justice”, in Commentaries on the Laws of England, book IV (Of Public Wrongs), Oxford, Oxfordshire: […] Clarendon Press, →OCLC, paragraph 18, page 140:

Forms

SpellingFeaturesLabelsSource
imbrace alternative lexicographic
embraces Number=Sing, Person=3, Tense=Pres lexicographic
embraced Tense=Past, VerbForm=Part lexicographic
embraced Tense=Past lexicographic
embracing Tense=Pres, VerbForm=Part lexicographic

Coordinates

kiss · fondle

Deriveds

unembraced · embraceable · embrace the suck · reembrace · embracer · re-embrace · embracery · embraceability · embrace the penguin · embracement · embracingly · embracive · all-embracing · embraceor · unembraceable · half-embrace · unembracing · embrace, extend and extinguish · overembrace

Holonyms

sexual activity · greeting

Hypernyms

grasp · greet

Hyponyms

bearhug · make out · snuggle · half-embrace · cuddle · clinch · overembrace · canoodle

Synonyms

amplect · enfold · entwine · beclip · coll · complect · oxter · fall on someone's neck · infold · press · strain · clip · accept · squeeze · halse · embrace · hold · fall on someone's neck · accoll · glomp · hug · cwtch · umbeclap · surround · comply

Translations (185)

tl yumakap (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · mi awhi (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · txb yäks- (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · id memeluk (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · pl obejmować (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · tr kucaklamak (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · eo ĉirkaŭpremi (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · pl uścisnąć (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · ca abraçar (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · kea lanbuxa (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · pl objąć (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · ru обнима́ть (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · uk обійма́ти (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · uk обня́ти (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · pt abraçar (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · my ဖက် (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · ro îmbrățișa (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · pl przytulić (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · sh за̀грлити (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · uk обніма́ти (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · da omfavne (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · rup ambrats (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · hu ölel (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · lo ກອດ (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · sh obújmiti (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · eo enbrakigi (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · kk аймалау (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · cs objímat (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · km អោបរឹត (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · mk обгрне (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · cs vzít za své (to seize (something) eagerly or with alacrity; to accept or take up with cordiality — see also welcome, accept) · cs obejmout (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · mi kēkeke (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · te కౌగిలించు (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · ko 껴안다 (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · hi आलिंगन करना (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · ru охватывать (to enfold, to include (ideas, principles, etc.)) · tr sarılmak (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · yue 抱 (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · ta தழுவு (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · pl uściskać (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · sv omfamna (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · lt apkabinti (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · tg оғӯш кардан (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · bg прегръщам (to seize (something) eagerly or with alacrity; to accept or take up with cordiality — see also welcome, accept) · ru обня́ть (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · pl tulić (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · nl omarmen (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · qu marq'ay (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · fa پذیرفتن (to enfold, to include (ideas, principles, etc.)) · cmn 摟抱 /搂抱 (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · hy գրկել (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · es embrazar (to seize (something) eagerly or with alacrity; to accept or take up with cordiality — see also welcome, accept) · sh гр̏лити (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · io embracar (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · cs přijmout (to seize (something) eagerly or with alacrity; to accept or take up with cordiality — see also welcome, accept) · sh prigrliti (to seize (something) eagerly or with alacrity; to accept or take up with cordiality — see also welcome, accept) · fi halata (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · th กอด (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · bg прегъ́рна (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · pl przytulać (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · mrw gakes (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · de annehmen (to enfold, to include (ideas, principles, etc.)) · ml കെട്ടിപ്പിടിക്കുക (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · mi kauawhiawhi (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · cmn 擁抱 /拥抱 (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · sq përqafoj (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · el ασπάζομαι (to enfold, to include (ideas, principles, etc.)) · uz quchmoq (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · sh zàgrliti (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · cs osvojit si (to seize (something) eagerly or with alacrity; to accept or take up with cordiality — see also welcome, accept) · uk обійня́ти (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · es abrazar (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · el ασπάζομαι (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · he חָבַק (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · nl omhelzen (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · bg прегърна (to seize (something) eagerly or with alacrity; to accept or take up with cordiality — see also welcome, accept) · el αγκαλιάζω (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · sh обујмљи́вати (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · be абня́ць (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · is faðma (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · ms memeluk (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · ml ആലിംഗനം ചെയ്യുക (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · as সাবট (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · kk құшақтау (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · mi whakahiapo (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · bg прегръ́щам (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · ar عَانَقَ (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · az bağrına basmaq (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · alt кучактаар (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · ca abraçar (to enfold, to include (ideas, principles, etc.)) · tl yakapin (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · rgn brazêr (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · la amplector (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · as আঁকোৱালি ল (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · kk құшу (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · ceb gakos (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · uz quchoqlamoq (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · uga 𐎈𐎁𐎖 (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · fr embrasser (to enfold, to include (ideas, principles, etc.)) · ko 포옹하다 (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · mi tauawhi (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · nb klemme (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · fa بغل کردن (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · mi awhiawhi (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · ka ეხუტება (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · sv krama (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · gl abrazar (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · alt кучар (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · uk включа́ти (to enfold, to include (ideas, principles, etc.)) · as সাৱটি ধৰ (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · be абдыма́ць (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · kk айқалау (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · fi syleillä (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · ko 끌어안다 (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · es embrazar (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · swb uv̄ahara (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · ja 抱擁する (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · mk гушка (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · sk objímať (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · ml പുണരുക (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · lv apskaut (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · it abbracciare (to enfold, to include (ideas, principles, etc.)) · ja 抱く (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · mba gakus (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · id mendekap (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · sh о̀бгрлити (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · eo ĉirkaŭbraki (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · sh prigrliti (to enfold, to include (ideas, principles, etc.)) · gl abrazar (to enfold, to include (ideas, principles, etc.)) · sh obujmljívati (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · sh обу́јмити (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · he חיבק \ חִבֵּק (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · it aderire (to enfold, to include (ideas, principles, etc.)) · mk обгрнува (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · mn тэврэх (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · mk прегрне (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · fr étreindre (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · ky кучактоо (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · egy H-p:t-D32:a (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · ur ملنا (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · sl objéti (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · nl knuffelen (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · eo ampleksi (to enfold, to include (ideas, principles, etc.)) · bg прегръщам (to enfold, to include (ideas, principles, etc.)) · egy i-n:q-D32:D40 (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · it abbracciare (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · af omhels (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · az qucaqlamaq (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · eo brakumi (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · et embama (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · sl objemati (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · ur گلے لگانا (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · sh gȑliti (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · vi ôm (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · oc abraçar (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · pl obejmować (to enfold, to include (ideas, principles, etc.)) · nb omfavne (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · egy q:n-i-D32 (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · oc abraçar (to enfold, to include (ideas, principles, etc.)) · mi kauawhi (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · nl omarmen (to enfold, to include (ideas, principles, etc.)) · eo ĉirkaŭpreni (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · de umarmen (to enfold, to include (ideas, principles, etc.)) · grc περιέχω (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · mk гушне (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · fi omaksua (to enfold, to include (ideas, principles, etc.)) · pt abraçar (to enfold, to include (ideas, principles, etc.)) · fa در آغوش گرفتن (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · oc embraçar (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · mk прегрнува (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · ru включать (to enfold, to include (ideas, principles, etc.)) · ar اِحْتَضَنَ (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · pap brasa (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · ur گلے ملنا (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · hy փարվել (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · gd ioma-ghlac (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · it inglobare (to enfold, to include (ideas, principles, etc.)) · sh òbgrliti (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · sk objať (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · sne bidokuop (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · ga cuach (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · de umarmen (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · fr embrasser (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug) · da kramme (to clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection — see also hug)

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