Link Centre Dictionary

scorch

UK/skɔːtʃ/ US/skɔɹt͡ʃ/ uncommon dated
verb (5) noun (3)

verb

1.

make very hot and dry

  • “The heat scorched the countryside”
Synonyms
2.

become superficially burned

  • “my eyebrows singed when I bent over the flames”
Synonyms
3.

destroy completely by or as if by fire

  • “The wildfire scorched the forest and several homes”
  • “the invaders scorched the land”
4.

burn slightly and superficially so as to affect color

  • “The cook blackened the chicken breast”
  • “The fire charred the ceiling above the mantelpiece”
  • “the flames scorched the ceiling”
Synonyms
5.

become scorched or singed under intense heat or dry conditions

  • “The exposed tree scorched in the hot sun”

noun

1.

a surface burn

Synonyms
2.

a plant disease that produces a browning or scorched appearance of plant tissues

3.

a discoloration caused by heat

Origin

From Middle English scorchen, scorcnen (“to make dry; parch”), perhaps an alteration of earlier *scorpnen, from Old Norse skorpna (“to shrivel up”).

Phrases

  • leaf scorch
  • scorch up
  • scorched earth

Related words

Word family

Broader terms

Narrower terms

WordNet 2.1 (Princeton University). Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. WordNet 2.1 Copyright Princeton University. All rights reserved. Wiktionary content is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike Licence.