encrust

/ɛnˈkrʌst/

Other forms: encrusted; encrusting; encrusts

When you encrust something, you coat it with a layer of some other material. You might encrust your homemade cheesecake bites in crushed cookie crumbs, for example.

There are many ways to encrust various kinds of food, as when you encrust fish or chicken in breadcrumbs before baking it. A jeweler might encrust a ring in tiny diamonds, and the ocean's tide can encrust a dock with tiny snails or barnacles. The Latin root of encrust is incrustare, which, fittingly, means "to cover with crust."

Definitions of encrust

1. verb

   cover or coat with a crust
   synonyms: incrust

   type of:

   coat, surface

   put a coat on; cover the surface of; furnish with a surface
2. verb

   form a crust or a hard layer
   synonyms: incrust

   types:

   effloresce

   become encrusted with crystals due to evaporation

   type of:

   harden, indurate

   become hard or harder
3. verb

   decorate or cover lavishly (as with gems)
   synonyms: beset, incrust

   type of:

   adorn, beautify, decorate, embellish, grace, ornament

   make more attractive by adding ornament, color, etc.