enveloping
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en·vel·op
(ĕn-vĕl′əp)tr.v. en·vel·oped, en·vel·op·ing, en·vel·ops
1. To wrap, enclose, or cover: "Accompanying the darkness, a stillness envelops the city" (Curtis Wilkie).
2. To surround: The troops enveloped the town.
[Middle English envolupen, to be involved in, from Old French envoluper, envoloper : en-, in; see en-1 + voloper, to wrap up; perhaps akin to Medieval Latin faluppa, chaff, straw (influenced by Latin volvere, to roll).]
en·vel′op·er n.
en·vel′op·ment n.
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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Adj. | 1. | enveloping - surrounding and closing in on or hemming in; "the army's enveloping maneuver" close - at or within a short distance in space or time or having elements near each other; "close to noon"; "how close are we to town?"; "a close formation of ships" |
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enveloping
adjective enclosing, surrounding, concealing, encompassing, shrouding, encircling, all-embracing, enfolding Astronomers are unable to see the planet's surface because of the enveloping clouds.
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