combust
Học thuậtThân thiện
Definition
- Verb (intransitive):
- To catch fire and burn; to undergo the process of combustion.
- To become very angry; to explode with rage.
- Verb (transitive):
- To cause something to burn or undergo combustion.
- To cause someone to become violently angry.
Usage
- As an intransitive verb, combust describes the action of a material starting to burn or a person becoming enraged.
- As a transitive verb, combust describes the action of making something burn or making someone angry.
Examples
- Intransitive Verb (to burn):
- The dry leaves combusted quickly in the intense heat.
- If the temperature gets high enough, the material will combust spontaneously.
- Intransitive Verb (to become angry):
- He combusted with rage when he heard the news.
- The manager combusted after seeing the repeated mistake.
- Transitive Verb (to cause to burn):
- The engine combusts fuel to produce power.
- Power plants combust coal to generate electricity.
- Transitive Verb (to cause anger):
- The unfair decision combusted the entire team.
- Her insensitive comments combusted the already tense situation.
Advanced Usage
- Technical/Scientific Context: Often used in technical writing to describe controlled or uncontrolled burning, especially in engineering (e.g., internal combustion engines) and chemistry.
- The mixture must reach its flash point to combust.
- Figurative Context (Emotion): Used for dramatic effect to describe extreme, sudden anger.
- The scandal caused the political world to combust.
Variants and Related Words
- Combustion (n): The process of burning; a chemical reaction between a fuel and an oxidant.
- The combustion of gasoline releases energy.
- Combustible (adj): Capable of catching fire and burning easily.
- Store combustible materials in a safe place.
- Combustibility (n): The quality of being combustible.
- Incombustible (adj): Not capable of being burned; fireproof.
Synonyms
- Burn, Ignite, Inflame, Catch Fire: (for the burning sense).
- Explode, Rage, Fume, Seethe, Blow up: (for the anger sense).
Phrasal Verbs
- (Not commonly used with particles. The word typically stands alone.)
Related Idioms
- To combust spontaneously: To burst into flames without an apparent external ignition source (used literally or figuratively for sudden anger).
- The debate was so heated it seemed the room would combust spontaneously.
Verb
- undergo combustion
- Maple wood burns well
- cause to become violent or angry
- Riots combusted Pakistan after the U.S. air attacks on Afghanistan
- get very angry and fly into a rage
- The professor combusted when the student didn't know the answer to a very elementary question
- Spam makes me go ballistic
- start to burn or burst into flames
- Marsh gases ignited suddenly
- The oily rags combusted spontaneously
- cause to burn or combust
- The sun burned off the fog
- We combust coal and other fossil fuels