What does "digest" mean?
That which is digested; especially, that which is worked over, classified, and arranged under proper heads or titles.
Digest
/daɪˈd͡ʒɛst/ noun, verb
noun, verb ·Very common ·Middle school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: That which is digested; especially, that which is worked over, classified, and arranged under proper heads or titles.
- Grammar: digest is listed as noun, verb.
- Nearest alternatives: abbreviate, abbreviation, abbreviature, abide.
- Useful contrasts: barfs, forget, full text.
- Usage evidence: Read the poem several times and digest it.
How to use "digest"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "digest" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "digest" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "digest" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "digest" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "digest" is acting as noun, verb in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "abbreviate" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "digest", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 That which is digested; especially, that which is worked over, classified, and arranged under proper heads or titles.
"By also relating the tales included in the anthology to various facts of that development, he leaves no doubt that this volume constitutes a veritable digest of the remarkable strides made by the genre in recent years."
- 2 something that is compiled (as into a single book or file) wordnet
- 3 A compilation of statutes or decisions analytically arranged; a summary of laws.
"Comyn's Digest"
- 4 a periodical that summarizes the news wordnet
- 5 Any collection of articles, as an Internet mailing list including a week's postings, or a magazine arranging a collection of writings.
"Reader's Digest is published monthly."
Show 1 more definition
- 6 The result of applying a hash function to a message.
Verb
- 1 To distribute or arrange methodically; to work over and classify; to reduce to portions for ready use or application. transitive
"to digest laws"
- 2 soften or disintegrate by means of chemical action, heat, or moisture wordnet
- 3 To separate (the food) in its passage through the alimentary canal into the nutritive and nonnutritive elements; to prepare, by the action of the digestive juices, for conversion into blood; to convert into chyme. transitive
"In the morning giue them [horses] barley or prouender, a little at a time in diſtinct or ſeueral portions, tvvice or thrice one after another, ſo as he may chevv and eke diſgeſt it thoroughly, othervviſe if he rauen it, as he vvil do hauing much at a time, he rendreth it in his dung vvhole and not diſgeſted."
- 4 make more concise wordnet
- 5 To think over and arrange methodically in the mind; to reduce to a plan or method; to receive in the mind and consider carefully; to get an understanding of; to comprehend. transitive
"Feelingly digest the words you speak in prayer."
Show 14 more definitions
- 6 soften or disintegrate, as by undergoing exposure to heat or moisture wordnet
- 7 To bear comfortably or patiently; to be reconciled to; to brook.
"I never can digest the loss of most of Origen's works."
- 8 systematize, as by classifying and summarizing wordnet
- 9 To expose to a gentle heat in a boiler or matrass, as a preparation for chemical operations. transitive
- 10 become assimilated into the body wordnet
- 11 To undergo digestion. intransitive
"I just ate an omelette and I'm waiting for it to digest."
- 12 arrange and integrate in the mind wordnet
- 13 To cut with one or more restriction endonucleases. transitive
- 14 put up with something or somebody unpleasant wordnet
- 15 To suppurate; to generate pus, as an ulcer. intransitive, obsolete
"The Lips of the Abſceſs digeſted vvell, but from vvithin it onely gleeted, and thruſt out Fat, vvhich vve daily cut off vvithout the loſs of a drop of blood, and dreſſed up the Abſceſs vvith mundif. ex apio, continuing the uſe of diſcutient Fomentations and Cataplaſins."
- 16 convert food into absorbable substances wordnet
- 17 To cause to suppurate, or generate pus, as an ulcer or wound. obsolete, transitive
- 18 To ripen; to mature. obsolete, transitive
"well-digested fruits"
- 19 To quieten or reduce (a negative feeling, such as anger or grief). obsolete, transitive
Example
"Read the poem several times and digest it."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "digest"?
Common synonyms include: abbreviate, abbreviation, abbreviature, abide, abide, ablate.
How do you use "digest" in a sentence?
Read the poem several times and digest it.
How do you pronounce "digest"?
Pronounced /daɪˈd͡ʒɛst/.
Etymology
Etymology 1
From Middle English digesten, from Latin dīgestus, past participle of dīgerō (“carry apart”), from dī- (for dis- (“apart”)) + gerō (“I carry”), influenced by Middle French digestion. Partly displaced native Old English meltan (intransitive) and mieltan (transitive), both “to melt, to digest,” whence Modern English melt.
Etymology 2
From Latin dīgesta, neuter plural of dīgestus, past participle of dīgerō (“separate”).