Adjacent Words

Ignite definitions

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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

IGNI'TE, v.t. [L. ignis, fire.] To kindle, or set on fire.
1. More generally, to communicate fire to, or to render luminous or red by heat; as, to ignite charcoal or iron. Anthracite is ignited with more difficulty than bituminous coal.
IGNI'TE, v.i. To take fire; to become red with heat.

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

v
1: cause to start burning; subject to fire or great heat; "Great heat can ignite almost any dry matter"; "Light a cigarette" [syn: ignite, light] [ant: blow out, extinguish, quench, snuff out]
2: start to burn or burst into flames; "Marsh gases ignited suddenly"; "The oily rags combusted spontaneously" [syn: erupt, ignite, catch fire, take fire, combust, conflagrate]
3: arouse or excite feelings and passions; "The ostentatious way of living of the rich ignites the hatred of the poor"; "The refugees' fate stirred up compassion around the world"; "Wake old feelings of hatred" [syn: inflame, stir up, wake, ignite, heat, fire up]

Merriam Webster's

verb (ignited; igniting) Etymology: Latin ignitus, past participle of ignire to ignite, from ignis Date: 1666 transitive verb 1. to subject to fire or intense heat; especially to render luminous by heat 2. a. to set afire; also kindle b. to cause (a fuel) to burn 3. a. to heat up ; excite <oppression that ignited the hatred of the people> b. to set in motion ; spark <ignite a debate> intransitive verb 1. to catch fire 2. to begin to glow • ignitability noun • ignitable also ignitible adjective • igniter also ignitor noun

Oxford Reference Dictionary

v. 1 tr. set fire to; cause to burn. 2 intr. catch fire. 3 tr. Chem. heat to the point of combustion or chemical change. 4 tr. provoke or excite (feelings etc.). Derivatives: ignitable adj. ignitability n. ignitible adj. ignitibility n. Etymology: L ignire ignit- f. ignis fire

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Ignite Ig*nite", v. t. [imp. & p. p. Ignited; p. pr. & vb. n. Igniting.] [L. ignitus, p. p. of ignire to ignite, fr. ignis fire. See Igneous.] 1. To kindle or set on fire; as, to ignite paper or wood. 2. (Chem.) To subject to the action of intense heat; to heat strongly; -- often said of incombustible or infusible substances; as, to ignite iron or platinum.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Ignite Ig*nite", v. i. To take fire; to begin to burn.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

(ignites, igniting, ignited) 1. When you ignite something or when it ignites, it starts burning or explodes. The bombs ignited a fire which destroyed some 60 houses... The blasts were caused by pockets of methane gas that ignited. VERB: V n, V 2. If something or someone ignites your feelings, they cause you to have very strong feelings about something. (LITERARY) There was one teacher who really ignited my interest in words... VERB: V n

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

I. v. a. Kindle, set fire to, set on fire. II. v. n. Kindle, take fire, catch fire.

Moby Thesaurus

bank, blaze up, burn, conflagrate, enkindle, fan the flame, feed, feed the fire, fire, fire up, flame up, flare up, inflame, kindle, light, light up, rekindle, relight, relume, set fire to, set on fire, spunk up, stir the fire, stoke, stoke the fire, strike a light, take fire, torch, touch off