Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun The process of burning.
  • noun A chemical change, especially oxidation, accompanied by the production of heat and light.
  • noun Violent anger or agitation.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • noun The action of fire on inflammable materials; the act or process of burning.
  • noun . Tumult; violent agitation with hurry and noise; inflammatory excitement; confusion; uproar.
  • noun In astrology, the state of being combust.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • noun The state of burning.
  • noun (Chem.) The combination of a combustible with a supporter of combustion, producing heat, and sometimes both light and heat.
  • noun (Chem.) a gas, as oxygen, the combination of which with a combustible, as coal, constitutes combustion.
  • noun obsolete Violent agitation; confusion; tumult.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun chemistry The act or process of burning.
  • noun A process where two chemicals are combined to produce heat.
  • noun A process wherein a fuel is combined with oxygen, usually at high temperature, releasing heat.
  • noun figuratively Violent agitation, tumult.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • noun the act of burning something
  • noun a process in which a substance reacts with oxygen to give heat and light
  • noun a state of violent disturbance and excitement

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[Middle English, from Late Latin combustiō, combustiōn-, from Latin combustus, past participle of combūrere, to burn up, blend of com-, intensive pref.; see com– and ambūrere, to burn around (amb-, ambi-, ambi- + ūrere, to burn).]

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From Old French combustion, from comburere "to burn", itself from the intensifying prefix com- + the root burere (a faulty sep. of amburere "to burn around", itself from ambi- + urere "to burn, singe").

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