slow match


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

Origin of slow match

1
First recorded in 1795–1805

Words Nearby slow match

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use slow match in a sentence

  • He broke off the ends of three cartridges, poured the powder in at the keyhole, and then inserted the slow match.

    The Tiger of Mysore | G. A. Henty
  • Dick hastily clambered up the wall, ran to the gate, blew the tinder, and then applied it to the slow match.

    The Tiger of Mysore | G. A. Henty
  • He wanted to get over the wall again and look in at the window, to see if the slow match had not gone out.

  • I think that had they put a slow match in the magazine of the other brigantine it would have exploded before this.

    A Roving Commission | G. A. Henty
  • Taken in the very act--with the barrels of gunpowder laid ready, and the slow match in his hand!

    The Lost Treasure of Trevlyn | Evelyn Everett-Green

British Dictionary definitions for slow match

slow match

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

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