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Infuse vs Immerse - What's the difference?

infuse | immerse |

In transitive terms the difference between infuse and immerse

is that infuse is to make an infusion with (an ingredient); to tincture; to saturate while immerse is to involve deeply.

As an adjective immerse is

immersed; buried; sunk.

infuse

English

Verb

(infus)
  • To cause to become an element of something; to insert or fill.
  • To steep in a liquid, so as to extract the soluble constituents (usually medicinal or herbal).
  • * Coxe
    • One scruple of dried leaves is infused in ten ounces of warm water.
  • To inspire; to inspirit or animate; to fill (with).
  • * Shakespeare
    • Infuse his breast with magnanimity.
  • * Shakespeare
    • infusing him with self and vain conceit
  • To instill as a quality.
  • * Shakespeare
    • That souls of animals infuse themselves / Into the trunks of men.
  • * Jonathan Swift
    • Why should he desire to have qualities infused into his son, which himself never possessed, or knew, or found the want of, in the acquisition of his wealth?
  • To undergo infusion.
  • * Let it infuse for five minutes.
  • To make an infusion with (an ingredient); to tincture; to saturate.
    • (Francis Bacon)
  • (obsolete) To pour in, as a liquid; to pour (into or upon); to shed.
  • * Denham
    • That strong Circean liquor cease to infuse .

    References

    * 1902 Webster's International dictionary. * 1984 Consise Oxford 7th ed.

    See also

    * fuse ----

    immerse

    English

    Verb

    (immers)
  • To put under the surface of a liquid; to dunk.
    • Archimedes determined the volume of objects by immersing them in water.
  • To involve deeply
    • The sculptor immersed himself in anatomic studies.
  • (mathematics)
  • * 2002 , Kari Jormakka, Flying Dutchmen: Motion in Architecture (page 40)
    • Thus, in mathematical terms a Klein bottle cannot be "embedded" but only "immersed " in three dimensions as an embedding has no self-intersections but an immersion may have them.

    Synonyms

    * submerge

    Derived terms

    * immersion * immersive

    Adjective

    (en adjective)
  • (obsolete) Immersed; buried; sunk.
  • * Francis Bacon
    • After a long enquiry of things immerse in matter, I interpose some object which is immateriate, or less materiate; such as this of sounds.
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