burning

[ bur-ning ]
See synonyms for: burningburnings on Thesaurus.com

adjective
  1. aflame; on fire.

  2. very hot; simmering: The water was burning.

  1. very bright; glowing: She wore a burning red bathing suit.

  2. caused by or as if by fire, a burn, or heat: He had a burning sensation in his throat.

  3. intense; passionate: a burning desire.

  4. urgent or crucial: a burning question.

noun
  1. the state, process, sensation, or effect of being on fire, burned, or subjected to intense heat.

  2. the baking of ceramic products to develop hardness and other properties.

  1. the heating or the calcining of certain ores and rocks as a preliminary stage in various industrial processes.

Origin of burning

1
before 1000; Middle English brenning (noun, adj.), Old English byrnende (adj.). See burn1, -ing1, -ing2

Other words from burning

  • burn·ing·ly, adverb
  • non·burn·ing, adjective, noun
  • un·burn·ing, adjective

Words Nearby burning

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use burning in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for burning

burning

/ (ˈbɜːnɪŋ) /


adjective
  1. intense; passionate

  2. urgent; crucial: a burning problem

noun
  1. a form of heat treatment used to harden and finish ceramic materials or to prepare certain ores for further treatment by calcination

  2. overheating of an alloy during heat treatment in which local fusion or excessive oxide formation and penetration occur, weakening the alloy

  1. the heat treatment of particular kinds of gemstones to change their colour

Derived forms of burning

  • burningly, adverb

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