To engulf or swallow up; to surround completely as if by a gulf or chasm.
From 'be-' (intensive prefix) + 'gulf' (from Old French 'golfe,' meaning 'bay' or 'abyss,' likely from Italian/Greek). The 'be-' prefix adds emphasis to the engulfing action.
The word 'gulf' originally just meant 'bay,' but over centuries English speakers started using it metaphorically for any huge gap or separation—the 'gulf between rich and poor' uses an ocean image to describe inequality!
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