Dictionary

ensconce en · VERB

Pronunciation

• /ɛnˈskɒns/ (UK)
• /ɛnˈskɑns/ (US)
• (US) audio
• ĭn-skäns' (US)

Etymology

From en- + sconce, “to place in a sconce (“fortification”)”.

Meanings

1. (transitive) To place in a secure environment.
   • The film [Pretty Woman] grossed $464 million worldwide, ensconcing her [Julia Roberts] in the Hollywood A-list. 2014 January 21, Hermione Hoby, “Julia Roberts interview for August: Osage County – ‘I might actually go to hell for this…’”, in The Daily Telegraph (Review section), London: Telegraph Media Group, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 07 Oct 2024:
   • They found the sharp new heap they were seeking, and ensconced themselves within the protection of three great elms that grew in a bunch within a few feet of the grave. 1876, Mark Twain, chapter IX, in The Adventures of Tom Sawyer:
   • She shall not see me, I will ensconce mee behinde the Arras. c. 1597 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Merry Wiues of Windsor”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act III, scene iii]:
2. (intransitive, transitive) To settle comfortably.
   • So many invitations had been extended to this premiére that the train was pretty nearly full; [...] the press and other guests distributed themselves over the remaining accommodation, and I ensconced myself in a facing window seat in one of the compartments of the third-class brake next the tender. 1941 June, Cecil J. Allen, “British Locomotive Practice and Performance”, in Railway Magazine, pages 261, 263:
   • […] Major was already ensconced on his bed of straw, under a lantern which hung from a beam. 1943 November – 1944 February (date written; published 1945 August 17), George Orwell [pseudonym; Eric Arthur Blair], Animal Farm […], London: Secker & Warburg, published May 1962, →OCLC:
   • NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover and Christina Koch and Canadian Space Agency astronaut Jeremy Hansen were ensconced in the Orion space capsule when they dropped into the Pacific Ocean off the coast of San Diego at 8:07 p.m. 2026 April 10, Amina Khan, “WATCH LIVE: Artemis II astronauts have splashed down on Earth”, in National Public Radio, Washington, D.C.: National Public Radio:

Forms

Deriveds

ensconcement

Synonyms

cuddle up (settle comfortably)

Translations (27)

es instalarse (to settle comfortably) · pl rozlokować się (to settle comfortably) · pl rozlokowywać się (to settle comfortably) · pl ukrywać (to place in a secure environment) · pl zaszywać się (to place in a secure environment) · ru устра́иваться (to settle comfortably) · de niederlassen (to settle comfortably) · nl veilig wegbergen (to place in a secure environment) · de sicher unterbringen (to place in a secure environment) · cs uvelebit se (to settle comfortably) · pl usadowić się (to settle comfortably) · sq rehatoj (to settle comfortably) · de bequem machen (to settle comfortably) · pl schować (to place in a secure environment) · pl rozsiadać się (to settle comfortably) · pl zaszyć się (to place in a secure environment) · pl usadawiać się (to settle comfortably) · nl nestelen (to settle comfortably) · ru укры́ть (to place in a secure environment) · cs uložit (to place in a secure environment) · pl rozsiąść się (to settle comfortably) · ru устро́иться (to settle comfortably) · ru укрыва́ть (to place in a secure environment) · cs usadit se (to settle comfortably) · pl chować (to place in a secure environment) · sq fsheh (to place in a secure environment) · pl ukryć (to place in a secure environment)