English Explanatory Dictionary

smolder

English dictionary entry

Meanings

verb
  1. To burn with no flame and little smoke.
  2. To show signs of repressed anger or suppressed mental turmoil or other strong emotion, such as passion.
  3. To exist in a suppressed or hidden state.
noun
  1. The act of smoldering or something that smolders.

Pronunciation

/ˈsmoʊldɚ/ en-us-smolder.ogg

Word forms

smolder smolders smoldering smoldered smoulder

Etymology

From Middle English smolderen (“to suffocate, stifle”), from Middle English smolder (“smoke, smoky vapour”), ultimately from Proto-West Germanic *smolōn (“to burn, glow, fume, smoulder”). Related to Proto-West Germanic *smallijan (> English smell).

Related words

do a slow burn

Derived words

smolderer smolderingly smolderingness
This entry uses open data from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA/GFDL). Word forms are used for search and are not indexed as separate pages.
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