singe

[sinj] /sɪndʒ/

verb (used with object), singed, singeing.

to burn superficially or slightly; scorch.

to burn the ends, projections, nap, or the like, of (hair, cloth, etc.).

to subject (the carcass of an animal or bird) to flame in order to remove hair, bristles, feathers, etc.

noun

a superficial burn.

the act of singeing.

Origin

before 1000; Middle English sengen (v.), Old English sencgan; cognate with Dutch zengen, German sengen; akin to Old Norse sangr singed, burnt

Related forms

singeingly, adverb

unsinged, adjective

Can be confused

singeing, singing.

Synonyms

1. char. See burn¹ .

Examples from the web for singe

Enjoy your fire-breathing boys, but be careful: it may singe your throat.
Right click on any file and all info on that file will appear and renaming is a singe.
And the living being begins its life from one, singe cell.
Think about light-sensitive molecules and singe cells.
They offer singe and double rooms that are humbly decorated.
But only a couple of feet separates you from the fire, which may singe your hair.

British Dictionary definitions for singe

singe

/sɪndʒ/

verb singes, singeing, singed

to burn or be burnt superficially; scorch: to singe one's clothes

(transitive) to burn the ends of (hair, etc)

(transitive) to expose (a carcass) to flame to remove bristles or hair

noun

a superficial burn

Word Origin

Old English sengan; related to Middle High German sengen to singe, Dutch sengel spark, Norwegian sengla to smell of burning, Swedish sjängla to singe, Icelandic sāngr

Word Origin and History for singe

Old English sengan "to burn lightly, burn the edges" (of hair, wings, etc.), from Proto-Germanic *sangjanan (cf. Old Frisian of-sendza, Middle Dutch singhen, Dutch zengen, Old High German sengan, German sengen "to singe"). The root is said to be related to that of sing (v.), on the idea of some sort of sound produced by singeing (e.g. Century Dictionary), but Klein's sources reject this. Related: Singed; singeing. Singed cat "person whose appearance does not do him justice, person who is better than he looks" is from 1827.