joss stick

American  

noun

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

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joss stick British  

noun

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

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Etymology

Origin of joss stick

First recorded in 1880–85

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

joss stick

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

"It is odd, too, that you and the detectives should have noticed the smell of a joss stick in the flat," went on Miss Beale.

From Number Seventeen by Louis Tracy

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

From The Mandarin's Fan by Fergus Hume

"Evidently he is not acquainted with the peculiar smell of a joss stick."

From Number Seventeen by Louis Tracy

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

From The Mandarin's Fan by Fergus Hume