Indulge: Letting Yourself, or Someone Else, Have It
To indulge is to allow a pleasure, to yourself or to another person. The word always carries a hint that the thing is not strictly necessary.
To indulge is to allow a pleasure or a whim. The hint of excess is built in: nobody indulges in vegetables or in paying bills on time. The word implies the thing is enjoyable and slightly more than you needed.
- To allow yourself a pleasure. *She indulged in a second slice.*
- To satisfy someone's wish. *He indulges the children.*
- To yield to a desire. *Indulge my curiosity.*
Word forms
| Form | Word | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Verb | indulge | Indulge yourself. |
| Past | indulged | She indulged him. |
| Noun | indulgence | A small indulgence. |
| Adjective | indulgent | An indulgent parent. |
| Adjective | self-indulgent | A self-indulgent film. |
How it is used in a sentence
- They indulged in a long lunch.Indulge in for the thing enjoyed.
- Grandparents are allowed to indulge.No object needed.
- The review called the film self-indulgent.A common criticism: made for the maker.
The indulgence family
- Indulgence — a pleasure allowed, or in church history a remission of penance
- Indulgent — inclined to allow, sometimes too much
- Self-indulgent — excessive about your own pleasures
- Spoil — indulge a person until it does harm
- Moderation — the word that always turns up in the same paragraph
From Latin *indulgere*, to be kind or yielding. In medieval church use an *indulgence* was a remission of punishment for sin, and the trade in them helped trigger the Reformation.
Indulge in or indulge?
Both work. Indulge in takes the pleasure as an object; indulge alone or indulge yourself needs no object.
What were indulgences in church history?
Remissions of temporal punishment for sin. Their sale in the late Middle Ages was one of the grievances behind the Reformation.