embodied

[ em-bod-eed ]

adjective

1. expressed, personified, or exemplified in concrete form:

   The one-day intensive workshop is designed to shift peacemaking from words and theory to costly, embodied reality.

2. having or provided with a body; incarnate or corporeal:

   In most folklore, ghosts seem to be bound by many of the same physical laws that bind embodied beings.

3. Environmental Science. relating to or being the energy involved or required in the production, maintenance, or use of a particular concrete object, and therefore thought of as part of the object:

   You can increase the embodied efficiency of a new house by building it in an already dense neighborhood, taking advantage of existing infrastructure and shorter distances.

4. (of writing) portraying the details of bodily experience as they are lived or relived by the writer so as to evoke them sympathetically in the reader:

   Acting out your characters is something I recommend as part of the enlivening practice of embodied writing.

verb

1. the simple past tense and past participle of embody ( def ).

Other Words From

• well-em·bod·ied adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of embodied¹

embody ( def ) + -ed ²( def )

Example Sentences

Both male and female supporters embodied the vibe of any adult woman who smiles as she checks off her lengthy to-do list, busy but grateful to have such a full life.

From Salon

This is the type of monarchy embodied by Prince Carlo’s Bourbon ancestor, that very same Louis XIV who ruled by divine right and sought absolute power.

From Slate

Seattle quarterback Geno Smith embodied the yin and yang of this wild game, throwing three beautiful touchdown passes but offsetting those with three interceptions.

From Los Angeles Times

Kaulitz embodied the classic version of the titular alien from Steven Spielberg’s 1982 film, while Klum took on the disguised version of E.T.

From Los Angeles Times

That is toxic masculinity embodied: believing "fatherhood" is about contributing the DNA and putting your name on a birth certificate, but nothing more.

From Salon

Related Words

• absolute
• actual
• authentic
• certain
• evident
• for real
• honest
• legitimate
• original
• palpable
• physical
• positive
• sincere
• solid
• substantial
• substantive
• true
• undeniable