What does indulge mean?
Word: Indulge
Part of Speech: Verb
Meaning: Indulge means to let yourself enjoy something special, or to let someone have what they want.
Synonyms: spoil
How do you spell indulge?
Syllables: in - dulge
Tricky part: The closing sound is j, but no j is used. The l is followed straight away by ge.
Watch out for: indulj, indulje, indulg
Memory tip: A g followed by e says j, as it does in large and charge.
Indulge in a sentence
Example 1: After the exam, I like to indulge in a long afternoon of comics.
Example 2: Mum sometimes lets me indulge my love of mango ice cream.
Example 3: We indulged our curiosity and took the longer path to the waterfall.
Fun Fact
It comes from Latin indulgere, which meant to be kind or to give way to someone, and that gentle sense is still there today.
Practise the CREST Way
Word Cookie
Insert the correct pair of letters to form a word:
_nd_lge
a) i,a
b) u,u
c) i,u
d) e,u
Show answer
c) i,u. The opening matches the word into, and the vowel in the middle matches the one in bulb.
Word Cookie
Find the misspelt word in the sentence:
On the last Saturday of the holidays, we decided to indulge ourselves with a long picnic beside the lake and a delicous mango pudding.
a) delicous
b) picnic
c) indulge
d) pudding
Show answer
a) delicous. Delicious keeps its i after the c; the others are fine.
Word Connection
Choose the synonym of the word indulge as used in the sentence:
On her birthday, Naani likes to indulge her grandchildren with extra stories at bedtime.
a) scold
b) pamper
c) instruct
d) ignore
Show answer
b) pamper. Extra stories are a treat, and to pamper is to give treats.
Spell-o-Spell
One word in the list is misspelt. Choose what that word means.
1. indulge 2. mediocre 3. collegue 4. sapphire
a) to give in happily to a wish
b) a clear, bright blue jewel
c) a person you work with
d) only average and not very good
Show answer
c) a person you work with. Colleague needs an a before its final part.
Multiple Choice Questions
1. Which of these shows someone indulging a hobby?
a) queuing up to pay a phone bill
b) spending a free Sunday painting
c) tidying a desk before a lesson
d) copying a timetable into a diary
Show answer
b) spending a free Sunday painting
2. An aunt who indulges her nephew is likely to do what?
a) make him save all his money
b) check all his homework twice
c) say yes to whatever he asks
d) send him to bed before eight
Show answer
c) say yes to whatever he asks
