slow match

American  

noun

1. a slow-burning match or fuse, often consisting of a rope or cord soaked in a solution of saltpeter.

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slow match British  

noun

1. a match or fuse that burns slowly without flame, esp a wick impregnated with potassium nitrate

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Etymology

Origin of slow match

First recorded in 1795–1805

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

slow match

He shows us how to keep the slow match burning by blowing the ash off of it every few minutes, and how to use it to ignite the gunpowder.

From "Blood on the River" by Elisa Carbone

While he slept, a spark must have lit the powder bag—a spark from someone’s pipe or from the slow match on someone’s musket.

From "Blood on the River" by Elisa Carbone

He applied a slow match to it, and it broke into a blaze at once.

From A Roving Commission Or, Through the Black Insurrection at Hayti by G. A. (George Alfred) Henty

In the confusion and panic of the moment, the Vincennes was abandoned by her captain, who left a slow match burning.

From Memoirs of Service Afloat, During the War Between the States by Raphael Semmes

He took his plate for a slow match.

From Caleb in the Country by Jacob Abbott