ashes
plural noun
ruins or remains, as after destruction or burning
ashes
1 British
/ ˈæʃɪz /
plural noun
-
ruins or remains, as after destruction or burning
the city was left in ashes
-
the remains of a human body after cremation
Ashes
2
British
/ ˈæʃɪz /
plural noun
Etymology
Origin of Ashes
from the mock obituary of English cricket in The Times in 1882 after a great Australian victory at the Oval, in which it was said that the body would be cremated and the ashes taken to Australia
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
“Refusing to tear my clothes and smear ashes on my face in performative mourning for a white man that espoused violence is … not the same as violence,” Attiah said in another post.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 24, 2026
Prized vinyl records and vintage audio equipment are nothing more than a blank mush, speckled with ashes and broken pieces.
From Barron's ● Aug. 20, 2026
Lisa was standing on top of a Warner Bros. soundstage ready to open the box of prop ashes, to allow them to float over “Old Hollywood,” a lure that Mickey loved.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 18, 2026
Some 35 bodies and more than 100 sets of ashes were found by police who raided Legacy Independent Funeral Directors in Hull following a tip-off in March 2024.
From BBC ● Aug. 5, 2026
Rural school was sporadic; household chores—scrubbing shirts, sweeping ashes, carrying wood and water—were endless.
From "American Spirits" by Barb Rosenstock
But Vaughan added: "They are certainly capable of doing something really special, and winning back the Ashes for England next summer."
From BBC ● Aug. 31, 2026
The most obvious differential between his new quartet is pace - something brought into further focus by England's decision to prioritise bowlers who reach high speeds during last winter's Ashes defeat.
From BBC ● Aug. 28, 2026
A home Ashes series is less than one year away.
From BBC ● Aug. 28, 2026
Australia have not lost an Ashes Test at the Gabba in Brisbane since 1986, or been beaten by England in Perth since 1978.
From BBC ● Aug. 21, 2026
Curly and Nippy done the same as Ashes.
From "The Journey of Little Charlie" by Christopher Paul Curtis
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
