smolder
Americanverb (used without object)
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to burn without flame; undergo slow or suppressed combustion.
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to exist or continue in a suppressed state or without outward demonstration.
Hatred smoldered beneath a polite surface.
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to display repressed feelings, as of indignation, anger, or the like.
to smolder with rage.
noun
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dense smoke resulting from slow or suppressed combustion.
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a smoldering fire.
verb
Other Word Forms
- unsmoldering adjective
Etymology
Origin of smolder
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
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
“My dad taught me,” said Akira, and an ember of worry smoldered in her stomach as she wondered again if he was okay.
From Literature
The Times found that a battalion chief ordered firefighters to roll up their hoses and leave the burn area despite complaints by crews that the ground was still smoldering.
From Los Angeles Times
She didn’t think the smoldering warranted particular concern, given the fire had just been contained a few hours earlier.
From Los Angeles Times
The Times found that a battalion chief ordered firefighters to roll up their hoses and leave the burn area despite complaints by crews that the ground still was smoldering.
From Los Angeles Times
In the living room, about a dozen people spoke about what they had been through, from the frantic evacuation to the sight of smoldering ruins to the battle to get rebuilding permits.
From Los Angeles Times
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.
