scorch
Americanverb (used with object)
-
to affect the color, taste, etc., of by burning slightly.
The collar of the shirt was yellow where the iron had scorched it.
-
to parch or shrivel with heat.
The sun scorched the grass.
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to criticize severely.
- Antonyms:
- laud
-
Machinery. burn.
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to destroy (crops, towns, etc.) by or as if by fire in the path of an invading army's advance.
verb (used without object)
-
to become scorched.
Milk scorches easily.
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Informal. to travel or drive at high speed.
The car scorched along the highway.
noun
verb
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to burn or become burnt, so as to affect the colour, taste, etc, or to cause or feel pain
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to wither or parch or cause to wither from exposure to heat
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informal (intr) to be very hot
it is scorching outside
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informal (tr) to criticize harshly
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slang (intr) to drive or ride very fast
noun
-
a slight burn
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a mark caused by the application of too great heat
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horticulture a mark or series of marks on fruit, vegetables, etc, caused by pests or insecticides
Related Words
See burn 1.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of scorch
1400–50; late Middle English scorchen, perhaps blend of scorcnen (< Scandinavian; compare Old Norse skorpna to shrivel) and torch 1
Explanation
To scorch is to burn something fiercely, to the point where its surface — your face, prairie grass, a steak on the grill — chars or otherwise changes color. Although scorch usually refers to burning something (whether it's the sun or a blowtorch doing the burning), that's not always the case. An army can scorch an enemy territory — meaning raze everything in sight, without technically setting it on fire. Scorch can also mean to quickly overpower something or somebody, as in: "We're gonna scorch the other team tomorrow."
Vocabulary lists containing scorch
The Sweltering Words of Summer
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Vocabulary from history writings about the Triangle Factory Fire
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Term-ometer: Synonyms for "Hot"
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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.
A record-breaking heat wave will scorch Southern California this week, raising temperatures up to 35 degrees above normal for March and heightening concerns about heat-related illness and deaths.
From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 16, 2026
“In a physical attack, you can crash into drones, trap them in a net or scorch them with a laser,” said Andres Gomez, an electronics engineer at Aeronautical Industry.
From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 30, 2025
All eyes then turned on the final racer, the 25-year-old Braathen keeping his calm to scorch through to a historic victory for his adopted homeland.
From Barron's • Nov. 16, 2025
You’re not looking to fully blacken every kernel, just enough scorch to bring out that toasty, nutty edge.
From Salon • Aug. 5, 2025
When White left the Tribune offices, fires were burning on all sides, but, aside from blackened scorch marks, his building stood tall and proud.
From "The Great Fire" by Jim Murphy
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.
