scorch

C2+ Topic:Actions & Processes

US /skɔrtʃ/ UK /skɔːtʃ/ See IPA manual

Meanings

1

verb
to burn the surface of something so as to discolor or singe it

The iron, left too long, began to scorch the linen shirt.

Verb forms

Verb forms are not available for this word yet.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 verb · to burn the surface of... singe sear char burn blacken parch scald

Opposites

freeze chill

Word family

Derived forms scorchingscorcherscorched

Etymology

From Middle English scorchen, of uncertain origin, perhaps from Old French escorchier ('to strip off the skin') or from a Scandinavian source related to skorpna ('to shrivel').

Topics

Actions & Processes

External links

# scorch

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C2+
**Part of speech:** verb
**IPA (US):** /skɔrtʃ/
**IPA (UK):** /skɔːtʃ/

## Meanings
1. to burn the surface of something so as to discolor or singe it

## Examples
- The iron, left too long, began to scorch the linen shirt.

## Synonyms
- singe
- sear
- char
- burn
- blacken
- parch
- scald

## Antonyms
- freeze
- chill

## Derived Forms
- scorching
- scorcher
- scorched

## Etymology
From Middle English scorchen, of uncertain origin, perhaps from Old French escorchier ('to strip off the skin') or from a Scandinavian source related to skorpna ('to shrivel').

## AI Etymology
Scorch comes from Middle English scorchen, of uncertain origin, perhaps from Old French escorchier ('to strip off the skin') or from a Scandinavian source related to skorpna ('to shrivel'). Older glosses in the chain include "to strip off the skin" and "to shrivel", which help explain the semantic range of the modern word. Morphologically, scorch is best read as borrowing and uncertain formation, yielding an English verb and noun shaped by both form history and later usage. In current English it functions as a verb and noun, with the sense "to burn the surface of something so as to discolor or singe it". English derivatives include scorching, scorcher, and scorched. The result is an English verb and noun whose etymology preserves the older forms while supporting the word's specialized modern meaning.

## Topics
- Actions & Processes

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