English Explanatory Dictionary

fume

English dictionary entry

Meanings

noun
  1. A gas or vapour/vapor that is strong-smelling or dangerous to inhale.
  2. A material that has been vaporized from the solid or liquid state to the gas state and re-coalesced to the solid state.
  3. Rage or excitement which deprives the mind of self-control.
  4. Anything unsubstantial or airy; idle conceit; vain imagination.
  5. The incense of praise; inordinate flattery.
  6. A passionate person.
verb
  1. To expose (something) to fumes; specifically, to expose wood, etc., to ammonia in order to produce dark tints.
  2. To apply or offer incense to.
  3. To emit fumes.
  4. To pass off in fumes or vapours.
  5. To express or feel great anger.
  6. To be as in a mist; to be dulled and stupefied.

Pronunciation

/fjuːm/ en-us-fume.ogg

Word forms

fume fumes fuming fumed

Etymology

From Middle English fume, from Old French fum (“smoke, steam, vapour”), from Latin fūmus (“vapour, smoke”), from Proto-Indo-European *dʰuh₂mós (“smoke”), from *dʰewh₂- (“to smoke, raise dust”). Doublet of thymus and thymos. More at dun, dusk, dust.

Synonyms

effluvium

Derived words

exhaust fume fumacious fume cupboard fumed fume date fume hood fumeless fumelike fumewort fumish fumivorous fumulus fumy fuming sulfuric acid
This entry uses open data from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA/GFDL). Word forms are used for search and are not indexed as separate pages.
Back to search All on F Russian dictionary Dahl dictionary