Combust

2 definitions found

From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:

  Combust \Com*bust"\, a. [L. combustus, p. p. of comburere to
     burn up; com- + burere (only in comp.), of uncertain origin;
     cf. bustum funeral pyre, prurire to itch, pruna a live coal,
     Gr. pyrso`s firebrand, Skr. plush to burn.]
     1. Burnt; consumed. [Obs.] --Chaucer.
        [1913 Webster]


  
     2. (Astron.) So near the sun as to be obscured or eclipsed by
        his light, as the moon or planets when not more than eight
        degrees and a half from the sun. [Obs.]
        [1913 Webster]
  
              Planets that are oft combust.         --Milton.
        [1913 Webster]

From WordNet (r) 2.0 [wn]:

  combust
       v 1: cause to burn or combust; "The sun burned off the fog"; "We
            combust coal and other fossil fuels" [syn: {burn}]
       2: start to burn or burst into flames; "Marsh gases ignited
          suddenly"; "The oily rags combusted spontaneously" [syn: {erupt},
           {ignite}, {catch fire}, {take fire}, {conflagrate}]
       3: 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" [syn: {flip
          one's lid}, {blow up}, {throw a fit}, {hit the roof}, {hit
          the ceiling}, {have kittens}, {have a fit}, {blow one's
          stack}, {fly off the handle}, {flip one's wig}, {lose
          one's temper}, {blow a fuse}, {go ballistic}]
       4: cause to become violent or angry; "Riots combusted Pakistan
          after the U.S. air attacks on Afghanistan"
       5: undergo combustion; "Maple wood burns well" [syn: {burn}]