joss stick

American  

noun

1. a slender stick of a dried, fragrant paste, burned by the Chinese as incense before a joss.

---

joss stick British  

noun

1. a stick of dried perfumed paste, giving off a fragrant odour when burnt as incense

---

Etymology

Origin of joss stick

First recorded in 1880–85

Example Sentences

At one end of the living room of a Formosan cottage, incense from a burning joss stick rose fragrantly before an image of Buddha.

From Time Magazine Archive

The only peculiar thing, if I may so describe it, about the place, is the scent of a burnt joss stick.

From Number Seventeen by Tracy, Louis

For quite ten minutes Ainsleigh continued waving, until the joss stick burnt down nearly to the root.

From The Mandarin's Fan by Hume, Fergus

Hwei went to the shrine and brought forth a joss stick.

From The Mandarin's Fan by Hume, Fergus

The joss stick fizzled and burned and gave out its queer smell, which made both slightly dizzy.

From The Mandarin's Fan by Hume, Fergus