ash

[ ash ]

/ æʃ /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR ash ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

the powdery residue of matter that remains after burning.

Also called volcanic ash. Geology. finely pulverized lava thrown out by a volcano in eruption.

a light, silvery-gray color.

ashes,

deathlike grayness; extreme pallor suggestive of death.
ruins, especially the residue of something destroyed; remains; vestiges: the ashes of their love; the ashes of the past.
mortal remains, especially the physical or corporeal body as liable to decay.
anything, as an act, gesture, speech, or feeling, that is symbolic of penance, regret, remorse, or the like.

Nearby words

Origin of ash

before 950; Middle English a(i)sshe, Old English asce, æsce; cognate with Frisian esk, Dutch asch, Old Norse, Old High German aska (German Asche), Gothic azgo < Germanic *askōn- (with Goth unexplained); akin to Latin ārēre be dry (see arid), Tocharian ās- get dry, Sanskrit ā́sa- ashes, Hittite hassi on the hearth; < Indo-European *HaHs-

Related formsash·i·ness, nounash·less, adjective

ash

[ ash ]

/ æʃ /

noun

any of various trees of the genus Fraxinus, of the olive family, especially F. excelsior, of Europe and Asia, or F. americana (white ash), of North America, having opposite, pinnate leaves and purplish flowers in small clusters.

the tough, straight-grained wood of any of these trees, valued as timber.

Also æsc. the symbol “æ.”

Origin of ash

before 900; Middle English asshe, Old English æsc; cognate with Frisian esk, Middle Low German, Middle Dutch asch, Old Saxon, Old High German asc (German Esche, with altered vowel from the adj. derivative eschen, Middle High German eschîn), Old Norse askr; akin to Latin ornus, Welsh onnen, Russian yásenʾ, Czech jasan, Lithuanian úosis, Armenian hatsʰi; Albanian ah beech; < Indo-European *Hoes-

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for ash

Brash, crass, and sporting a perpetually raised eyebrow, Ash Williams remains the ultimate postmodern superhero.
The King of Postmodern Cool Is Reborn in ‘Ash Vs. The Evil Dead’|Nick Schager|November 15, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Volcanoes spewed lava and ash, ocean floors were thrust upward, sand and rock and shale settled into slurry.
Napa’s Earthquake Is Not The Only Thing Shaking The Vineyards|Clive Irving|August 31, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The company says this produces wood that ignites easier and burns cleaner, with less creosote and ash.
Brooklyn’s Booming Firewood Industry|Dale Eisinger|July 8, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Lava and ash fell for days; the sun was obliterated for three months.
Book a Room for Two in a Santorini Cave|Joanna Eede|June 10, 2014|DAILY BEAST

All of us kids would be up and down the alleys looking in the ash cans for the labels.
Gordie Howe Hockey’s Greatest War Horse|W.C. Heinz|May 31, 2014|DAILY BEAST
On Ash Wednesday, the indulgences were promenaded through the town amid satirical songs.
History of the Reformation in the Sixteenth Century, Vol 2|J. H. Merle D'Aubign
Ash pits near a house carry moisture to walls, Cesspools leak through the soil.
Essays In Pastoral Medicine|Austin Malley
Dillon carefully put the ash from his cigarette into an ashtray.
The Invaders|William Fitzgerald Jenkins
The landscape became visible, fields of ash stretching out in all directions.
Second Variety|Philip Kindred Dick
I was beaten by a putt by the better ball of two of the native golfers, Mr. Ash and Mr. McGreevy.
Fifty Years of Golf|Horace G. Hutchinson

British Dictionary definitions for ash

ash

/ (æʃ) /

noun

the nonvolatile products and residue formed when matter is burnt

any of certain compounds formed by burningSee soda ash

fine particles of lava thrown out by an erupting volcano

a light silvery grey colour, often with a brownish tinge

Word Origin for ash

Old English æsce; related to Old Norse, Old High German aska, Gothic azgō, Latin aridus dry

noun

any oleaceous tree of the genus Fraxinus, esp F. excelsior of Europe and Asia, having compound leaves, clusters of small greenish flowers, and winged seeds

the close-grained durable wood of any of these trees, used for tool handles, etc

any of several trees resembling the ash, such as the mountain ash

Australian any of several Australian trees resembling the ash, esp of the eucalyptus genus

Word Origin for ash

Old English æsc; related to Old Norse askr, Old Saxon, Old High German ask, Lithuanian uosis

noun

the digraph æ, as in Old English, representing a front vowel approximately like that of the a in Modern English hat. The character is also used to represent this sound in the International Phonetic Alphabet

ASH

/ (æʃ) /

n acronym for (in Britain)

Action on Smoking and Health

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for ash

ash

n.1

"powdery remains of fire," Old English æsce "ash," from Proto-Germanic *askon (cf. Old Norse and Swedish aska, Old High German asca, German asche, Gothic azgo "ashes"), from PIE root *as- "to burn, glow" (cf. Sanskrit asah "ashes, dust," Armenian azazem "I dry up," Greek azein "to dry up, parch," Latin ardus "parched, dry"). Spanish and Portuguese ascua "red-hot coal" are Germanic loan-words.

Symbol of grief or repentance; hence Ash Wednesday (c.1300), from custom introduced by Pope Gregory the Great of sprinkling ashes on the heads of penitents on the first day of Lent. Ashes meaning "mortal remains of a person" is late 13c., in reference to the ancient custom of cremation.

ash

n.2

type of tree, Old English æsc "ash tree," also "spear made of ash wood," from Proto-Germanic *askaz, *askiz (cf. Old Norse askr, Old Saxon ask, Middle Dutch esce, German Esche), from PIE root *os- "ash tree" (cf. Armenian haci "ash tree," Albanian ah "beech," Greek oxya "beech," Latin ornus "wild mountain ash," Russian jasen, Lithuanian uosis "ash"). Ash was the preferred wood for spear-shafts, so Old English æsc sometimes meant "spear" (cf. æsc-here "company armed with spears").

ash

noun

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Origin of ash

ash

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Origin of ash

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ash

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Word Origin for ash

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Word Origin for ash

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ASH

n acronym for (in Britain)

ash

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