enfever: meaning, definition, pronunciation and examples
RareLiterary, Archaic
Quick answer
What does “enfever” mean?
To cause to have a fever.
Audio
Pronunciation
Definition
Meaning and Definition
To cause to have a fever; to excite or inflame, as with passion.
To stimulate to an unnatural degree of excitement or agitation; to make feverish.
Dialectal Variation
British vs American Usage
Differences
No significant regional difference in usage, as the term is equally rare in both varieties.
Connotations
Carries a poetic, slightly old-fashioned connotation. May imply an unhealthy or excessive state of excitement.
Frequency
Extremely low frequency in modern corpora for both BrE and AmE; found almost exclusively in 19th-century literature or deliberate archaisms.
Grammar
How to Use “enfever” in a Sentence
[Subject] enfever [Object] (e.g., The news enfevers the crowd).[Subject] be enfevered by [Agent] (e.g., She was enfevered by the prospect).Vocabulary
Collocations
Examples
Examples of “enfever” in a Sentence
verb
British English
- The tragic tales served only to enfever the already agitated mob.
- A tropical disease could enfever the entire crew.
American English
- The politician's speech enfevers his base with promises of change.
- Such rumors would only serve to enfever public speculation.
adverb
British English
- No adverbial form in standard use.
American English
- No adverbial form in standard use.
adjective
British English
- No standard adjectival form in use. 'Fevered' is used instead.
American English
- No standard adjectival form in use. 'Feverish' is used instead.
Usage
Meaning in Context
Business
Not used.
Academic
Rare, potentially in literary criticism or historical texts discussing emotional states.
Everyday
Not used in modern everyday conversation.
Technical
Not used in medical contexts; 'induce fever' or 'cause pyrexia' are standard.
Watch out
Common Mistakes When Using “enfever”
- Using it as an intransitive verb (e.g., 'He enfevers' is incorrect).
- Confusing it with 'endeavour'.
- Using it in a modern clinical context.
FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions
No, 'enfever' is considered rare and archaic. Modern synonyms like 'excite', 'agitate', or 'inflame' are preferred.
Yes, its core meaning is to cause a physical fever, but it has historically been used more frequently in a metaphorical sense to mean 'to excite or inflame passions'.
The most common mistake is trying to use it intransitively (e.g., 'He enfevers'). It is a transitive verb and requires an object.
Understanding rare or archaic words like 'enfever' is valuable for reading classical literature and poetry. It also deepens understanding of word formation and the historical relationship between literal and metaphorical meanings.
To cause to have a fever.
Enfever is usually literary, archaic in register.
Enfever: in British English it is pronounced /ɪnˈfiːvə/, and in American English it is pronounced /ɛnˈfivər/. Tap the audio buttons above to hear it.
Phrases
Idioms & Phrases
- “No common idioms”
Learning
Memory Aids
Mnemonic
Think: EN (to put into) + FEVER = to put into a fever, either literal or figurative.
Conceptual Metaphor
EXCITEMENT/AGITATION IS A FEVER; PASSION IS HEAT.
Practice
Quiz
In which context would 'enfever' be most appropriately used?