endue

American  

[en-doo, -dyoo] / ɛnˈdu, -ˈdyu /

Also indue

verb (used with object)

endued, enduing

1. to invest or endow with some gift, quality, or faculty.

2. to put on; assume.

   Hamlet endued the character of a madman.

3. to clothe.

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endue British  

/ ɪnˈdjuː /

verb

1. (usually foll by with) to invest or provide, as with some quality or trait

2. rare (foll by with) to clothe or dress (in)

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Other Word Forms

• unendued adjective

Etymology

Origin of endue

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English endewen “to induct, initiate,” from Anglo-French, Old French enduire, from Latin indūcere “to lead in, cover, induce”; see induce

Explanation

You probably hope that your years of ballet classes will endue you with the ability to dance like Baryshnikov. In other words, you're dreaming that all of those arabesques and pirouettes will provide you with the dancing talent you wish for. Endue is a fancy literary term that shows up most often in formal writing, but you could impress someone by using it to mean "endow," "invest," or "empower." Less often, endue is used to mean "to put clothes on," or "dress," which makes sense when you know that endue comes from the Latin word induere, or "to put on."

Example Sentences

Nothing was wanting to endue that drive with every illusion of a dream.

From Linda Lee, Incorporated A Novel by Vance, Louis Joseph

And with Love we cannot endue him, for that is desire in its supreme degree.

From The Hidden Power And Other Papers upon Mental Science by Troward, T. (Thomas)

That it may please thee to endue the Lords of the Council, and all the Nobility, with grace, wisdom, and understanding, We beseech thee to hear us, good Lord.

From The Book of Common Prayer and The Scottish Liturgy by Episcopal Church in Scotland

Two vulture brothers once I knew: Each form at will could they endue.

From The Rámáyan of Válmíki, translated into English verse by Griffith, Ralph T. H. (Ralph Thomas Hotchkin)

It is “the eyes alone that stamp the face with the outward symbol of animation and vitality,” and which endue it with the visible “sanctity of reason.”

From The Ladies Book of Useful Information Compiled from many sources by Anonymous