scorch

From Middle English scorchen, scorcnen (“to make dry; parch”), perhaps an alteration of earlier *scorpnen, from Old Norse skorpna (“to shrivel up”)[1].

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /skɔːtʃ/
• (General American) IPA^(key): /skɔɹtʃ/

• Audio (US)

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• Rhymes: -ɔː(ɹ)tʃ

scorch (countable and uncountable, plural scorches)

1. A slight or surface burn.
2. A discolouration caused by heat.
3. (phytopathology) Brown discoloration on the leaves of plants caused by heat, lack of water or by fungi.

• (slight burn): singe

scorch (third-person singular simple present scorches, present participle scorching, simple past and past participle scorched)

1. (transitive) To burn the surface of something so as to discolour it
2. (transitive) To wither, parch or destroy something by heat or fire, especially to make land or buildings unusable to an enemy
   • Prior

     Lashed by mad rage, and scorched by brutal fires.

3. (ergative) (To cause) to become scorched or singed
4. (intransitive) To move at high speed (so as to leave scorch marks on the ground)
5. To burn; to destroy by, or as by, fire.
   • Bible, Revelation xvi. 8

     Power was given unto him to scorch men with fire.

   • John Dryden

     the fire that scorches me to death

6. (transitive) To attack with bitter sarcasm or virulence.
7. (intransitive, colloquial, dated) To ride a bicycle furiously on a public highway.

• livid