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scorching

 [skawr-ching]   Origin

scorch·ing

   [skawr-ching]
adjective
1.
burning; very hot.
2.
caustic or scathing: a scorching denunciation.
Origin:
1555–65; scorch + -ing2

Related forms
scorch·ing·ly, adverb
un·scorch·ing, adjective

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Scorching is always a great word to know.
So is slumgullion. Does it mean:
a stew of meat, vegetables, potatoes, etc.
a children's mummer's parade, as on the Fourth of July, with prizes for the best costumes.
LEARN MORE UNUSUAL WORDS WITH WORD DYNAMO...
Dictionary.com Unabridged

scorch

   [skawrch]
verb (used with object)
1.
to affect the color, taste, etc., of by burning slightly: The collar of the shirt was yellow where the iron had scorched it.
2.
to parch or shrivel with heat: The sun scorched the grass.
3.
to criticize severely.
4.
Machinery. burn1 (def. 31).
5.
to destroy (crops, towns, etc.) by or as if by fire in the path of an invading army's advance.
verb (used without object)
6.
to become scorched: Milk scorches easily.
7.
Informal. to travel or drive at high speed: The car scorched along the highway.
noun
8.
a superficial burn.
Origin:
1400–50; late Middle English scorchen, perhaps blend of scorcnen (< Scandinavian; compare Old Norse skorpna to shrivel) and torch1

Related forms
un·scorched, adjective
well-scorched, adjective

Synonyms
1. char, blister. See burn1. 3. excoriate, condemn.

Antonyms
3. laud.

Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
Cite This Source Link To scorching
Collins
World English Dictionary
scorch (skɔːtʃ)
 
—vb
1.  to burn or become burnt, so as to affect the colour, taste, etc, or to cause or feel pain
2.  to wither or parch or cause to wither from exposure to heat
3.  informal (intr) to be very hot: it is scorching outside
4.  informal (tr) to criticize harshly
5.  slang (Brit) (intr) to drive or ride very fast
 
—n
6.  a slight burn
7.  a mark caused by the application of too great heat
8.  horticulture a mark or series of marks on fruit, vegetables, etc, caused by pests or insecticides
 
[C15: probably from Old Norse skorpna to shrivel up]
 
'scorching
 
—adj

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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Etymonline
Word Origin & History

scorch
c.1200, perhaps from O.N. skorpna "to be shriveled," cognate with O.E. scrimman "to shrink, dry up." Or perhaps from O.Fr. escorchier "to strip off the skin," from V.L. excorticare "to flay," from ex- + L. cortex (gen. corticis) "cork;" but OED finds this not likely. Scorcher "very hot day" first attested
EXPAND
1874. Scorched earth military strategy is 1937, translation of Chinese jiaotu, used against the Japanese in their advance into China.
COLLAPSE
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
Cite This Source
Slang Dictionary

scorching definition


  1. mod.
    winning at gambling; about to win something big. : Let me roll again. I'm really scorching.
  2. mod.
    caustic. : That remark was really scorching.
Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions by Richard A. Spears.Fourth Edition.
Copyright 2007. Published by McGraw Hill.
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