v. 25B6; verb
vast amounts of food and drink were consumed : EAT, devour, ingest, swallow, gobble up, wolf down, guzzle, feast on, snack on; DRINK, gulp down, imbibe, sup; informal tuck into, put away, polish off, dispose of, pig oneself on, down, neck, sink, swill; Brit. informal scoff, gollop, shift; N. Amer. informal scarf (down/up), snarf (down/up).
natural resources are being consumed at an alarming rate : USE (UP), utilize, expend; deplete, exhaust; waste, squander, drain, dissipate, fritter away.
the fire consumed fifty houses : DESTROY, demolish, lay waste, wipe out, annihilate, devastate, gut, ruin, wreck.
Carolyn was consumed with guilt : EAT UP, devour, obsess, grip, overwhelm; absorb, preoccupy.