simmer down
ər verb (used without object)
1.
to cook or cook in a liquid at or just below the boiling point.
2.
to make a gentle murmuring sound, as liquids cooking just below the boiling point.
3.
to be in a state of subdued or restrained activity, development, excitement, anger, etc.: The town simmered with rumors.
verb (used with object)
4.
to keep (liquid) in a state approaching boiling.
5.
to cook in a liquid that is kept at or just below the boiling point.
00:10
Simmer down
is always a great word to know.
So is interrobang. Does it mean:
| a children's mummer's parade, as on the Fourth of July, with prizes for the best costumes. |
| a printed punctuation mark (‽), available only in some typefaces, designed to combine the question mark (?) and the exclamation point (!), indicating a mixture of query and interjection, as after a rhetorical question. |
noun
Verb phrases 6.
the state or process of simmering.
7.
simmer down,
a.
to reduce in volume by simmering.
b.
Slang. to become calm or quiet, as from a state of anger or turmoil: We waited for the audience to simmer down.
Origin:
1645–55; alteration of earlier simper < ?
1645–55; alteration of earlier simper < ?
Related forms
sim·mer·ing·ly, adverb
re·sim·mer, verb
un·sim·mered, adjective
un·sim·mer·ing, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Link To simmer down
Collins
World English Dictionary
simmer (ˈsɪmə) ![[Click for IPA pronunciation guide]](http://static.sfdict.com/dictstatic/g/d/dictionary_questionbutton_default.gif) | |
| —vb | |
| 1. | to cook (food) gently at or just below the boiling point |
| 2. | (intr) to be about to break out in rage or excitement |
| —n | |
| 3. | the act, sound, or state of simmering |
| [C17: perhaps of imitative origin; compare German summen to hum] | |
| simmer down | |
| —vb | |
| 1. | informal (intr) to grow calmer or quieter, as after intense rage or excitement |
| 2. | (tr) to reduce the volume of (a liquid) by boiling slowly |
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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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
simmer
1650s, alteration of simperen "to simmer" (late 15c.), possibly of imitative origin. Figurative sense, of feelings, "to be agitated" is from 1764. Opposite sense, in simmer down, first recorded 1871.
"I must and will keep shady and quiet till Bret Harte simmers down a little." [Mark Twain, letter, 1871]
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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Slang Dictionary
simmer (down) definition
|
Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions by Richard A. Spears.Fourth Edition.
Copyright 2007. Published by McGraw Hill.
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Copyright 2007. Published by McGraw Hill.
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American Heritage
Idioms & Phrases
simmer down
Become calm after anger or excitement, as in Simmer down, Mary; I'm sure he'll make it up to you, or I haven't time to look at your report now, but I will when things have simmered down a bit. This idiom derives from simmer in the sense of "cook at low heat, below the boiling point." [Second half of 1800s]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.
Copyright © 1997. Published by Houghton Mifflin.
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Copyright © 1997. Published by Houghton Mifflin.
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