smolder

Or smoul·der

[smohl-der]

verb (used without object)

1. to burn without flame; undergo slow or suppressed combustion.

2. to exist or continue in a suppressed state or without outward demonstration.

   Hatred smoldered beneath a polite surface.

3. to display repressed feelings, as of indignation, anger, or the like.

   to smolder with rage.

noun

1. dense smoke resulting from slow or suppressed combustion.

2. a smoldering fire.

smolder

/ ˈsməʊldə /

verb

1. the US spelling of smoulder

Other Word Forms

• unsmoldering adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of smolder¹

1275–1325; (noun) Middle English smolder smoky vapor, dissimilated variant of smorther smother; (v.) Middle English (as present participle smolderende ), derivative of the noun

Example Sentences

“It’s still smoldering,” the hiker says from behind the camera.

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It is unclear whether the smoldering depicted in the hiker’s video was on state land.

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An attorney for the man charged with intentionally igniting a smoldering blaze that later became the deadly Palisades fire says the evidence against his client is thin and accused authorities of scapegoating him.

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Aerial footage broadcast by US media showed smoldering debris at the factory in Hickman County, Tennessee, with charred and mangled vehicles strewn across the facility.

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Embers can bury deep in tree roots and chaparral, become covered in heavy ash and continue to smolder until strong winds set them free.

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Related Words

• boil 
• erupt 
• explode 
• fester 
• seethe