fuse
1 Americannoun
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a tube, cord, or the like, filled or saturated with combustible matter, for igniting an explosive.
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fuze.
verb (used with object)
idioms
noun
verb (used with object)
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to combine or blend by melting together; melt.
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to unite or blend into a whole, as if by melting together.
The author skillfully fuses these fragments into a cohesive whole.
verb (used without object)
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to become liquid under the action of heat; melt.
At a relatively low temperature the metal will fuse.
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to become united or blended.
The two groups fused to create one strong union.
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Chiefly British. to overload an electric circuit so as to burn out a fuse.
idioms
verb
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to unite or become united by melting, esp by the action of heat
to fuse borax and copper sulphate at a high temperature
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to become or cause to become liquid, esp by the action of heat; melt
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to join or become combined; integrate
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(tr) to equip (an electric circuit, plug, etc) with a fuse
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to fail or cause to fail as a result of the blowing of a fuse
the lights fused
noun
noun
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a lead of combustible black powder in a waterproof covering ( safety fuse ), or a lead containing an explosive ( detonating fuse ), used to fire an explosive charge
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any device by which an explosive charge is ignited
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See blow 1
verb
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A safety device that protects an electric circuit from becoming overloaded. Fuses contain a length of thin wire (usually of a metal alloy) that melts and breaks the circuit if too much current flows through it. They were traditionally used to protect electronic equipment and prevent fires, but have largely been replaced by circuit breakers.
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A cord of readily combustible material that is lighted at one end to carry a flame along its length to detonate an explosive at the other end.
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To melt something, such as metal or glass, by heating.
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To blend two or more substances by melting.
Usage
What is a basic definition of fuse? Fuse means to unite or blend together. Fuse also refers to a protective device in an electrical current and to a tube or cord used to light explosives. Fuse is used in metalworking and similar industries to refer to combining metals by melting them down into liquids. In everyday use, fuse is used figuratively to mean to combine or unite anything as if they were melted together. For example, a band might fuse metal and electronic music to make a unique sound. Something that has been made by fusing things together is called a fusion.
- Real-life examples: Copper scraps can be fused together to make wires. Science fiction often fuses real science with fictional ideas. A mad scientist might fuse animals together to make monsters.
- Used in a sentence: The two kingdoms fused together to create a powerful nation.
- Real-life examples: Your house may have a fuse box that you can open to replace damaged fuses. Electronic devices such as televisions and computers almost always have fuses to prevent fires or explosions caused by electricity.
- Used in a sentence: The computer technician had to replace several blown fuses in the motherboard.
- Real-life examples: Almost all fireworks have fuses to prevent them from exploding immediately, such as in a person’s hand. An explosive weapon such as a bomb might have a fuse so the user can run away before it explodes. Explosives used in manufacturing or mining, such as dynamite, may also have fuses for the same reason.
- Used in a sentence: She lit the fuse of the giant firecracker.
Synonym Usage
See melt 1.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of fuse1
First recorded in 1640–50; from Italian fuso, from Latin fūsus “spindle” (i.e., a spindle-shaped tube filled with combustible matter)
Origin of fuse2
First recorded in 1675–85 for the verb; from Latin fūsus “melted, poured, cast,” past participle of fundere
Explanation
A fuse is something that burns in order to ignite a bomb. Do you see anything near you that resembles a bundle of dynamite sticks with a fuse burning down? If so, stop reading this and GET OUT OF HERE! Figuratively, if you say that someone has a short fuse, it means they get angry easily. If someone gets so angry they lose their temper, you can say that they blew a fuse. But this comes from another meaning of fuse — a device that interrupts the flow of electrical current so the system doesn’t get overloaded. If you use the toaster, microwave and dishwasher at the same time, you might literally blow a fuse. As a verb, if two things fuse, they blend or stick together.
Vocabulary lists containing fuse
ACT Vocabulary List
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Fish in a Tree
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The Boy Who Invented TV
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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:
This was the fuse which ignited the trouble.
From BBC ● Jul. 20, 2026
The bizarre imagery of war feeds back into civilian normality in a British pen stand and inkwell fashioned from the nose fuse of a German shell.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 15, 2026
Sometimes mitochondria fuse together into large interconnected networks that generate energy efficiently.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 3, 2026
The device was rendered safe and the fuse and powder sent for testing.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 3, 2026
Then this buzz radiated up my calves like a spark climbing a long fuse up my gangly legs, tripping off a series of flashes in my thighs and shoulders.
From "The Line Tender" by Kate Allen
But he also doesn’t expect to see a repeat of such a day, given so many factors had fused together to drive Friday’s action.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 31, 2026
“They had pieces of my studio fused to them. Iron, glass. … Literally anything around it that melted and could not turn to ash got stuck to them,” Bayouth said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 29, 2026
Over subsequent releases – the exuberant Shooting Star, external, or the braggadocious Woke Up, external – they crystallised a musical vision that fused sci-fi aesthetics to the elastic grooves of 90s R&B.
From BBC ● Jun. 19, 2026
The dance fused African, European and regional dance traditions into something new and distinctly American.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 15, 2026
I wasn’t sure if it was just that heavy, or if generations of accumulated moisture and dust had somehow fused it to the floor.
From "Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children" by Ransom Riggs
On food, the mainland is fusing with Hong Kong.
From Salon ● Aug. 9, 2026
Inspired by rap icon Tupac Shakur, turbaned Sidhu built his global following by fusing Punjabi songs with the aesthetic of American hip-hop.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 21, 2026
Hadrian hopes to get a “productivity uplift” by fusing workforce training and software, founder Chris Power has said.
From Barron's ● Mar. 25, 2026
“This concept of fusing structured information and generative AI will repeat itself in one industry after another,” Huang says.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 17, 2026
“They keep talking about fusing metals. I wonder—” “They were talking about the greatest Titan weapon,” I said.
From "The Battle of the Labyrinth" by Rick Riordan
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.
