To wreathe means to surround, encircle, or decorate something by wrapping or twining around it. When smoke wreathes around a campfire, it curls and swirls through the air. When a chef presents a dish wreathed in steam, hot vapor surrounds and rises from the food.

The word comes from the practice of making wreaths: those circular decorations woven from flowers, leaves, or branches. Just as a wreath encircles a door at Christmas, anything that wreathes forms a circle or spiral around something else. Fog might wreathe around a mountaintop, or vines might wreathe around a garden trellis.

You'll often see wreathed used with smiles: someone's face might be wreathed in smiles, meaning their whole face radiates happiness, with smile lines spreading outward like circles. The word suggests gentle, graceful movement or covering, not tight binding. When morning mist wreathes through a valley, it drifts and swirls rather than clings heavily.