ash

1 of 3

noun (1)

1
: any of a genus (Fraxinus) of trees of the olive family with pinnate leaves, thin furrowed bark, and gray branchlets
2
: the tough elastic wood of an ash
3
[Old English æsc, name of the corresponding runic letter] : the ligature æ used in Old English and some phonetic alphabets to represent a low front vowel \a\

Illustration of ash

Illustration of ash
  • 1ash 1

ash

2 of 3

noun (2)

often attributive
1
: something that symbolizes grief, repentance, or humiliation
2
a
: the solid residue left when combustible material is thoroughly burned or is oxidized by chemical means
b
: fine particles of mineral matter from a volcanic vent
3
ashes plural : the remains of the dead human body after cremation or disintegration
4
ashes plural : deathly pallor
the lip of ashes and the cheek of flameLord Byron
5
ashes plural : ruins
ashless adjective

ash

3 of 3

verb

ashed; ashing; ashes

transitive verb

1
technical : to convert into ash
The insoluble resid fractions are ashed at 800° C to constant weight.Joseph Haggin
2
: to remove ash residue from (something, such as a cigarette) usually by flicking or tapping
She ashed her cigarette onto a patch of dirt floor, then handed it to me.Dominic Smith
3
: to apply ash to : to coat with ashes
The rules that once governed the way the game was played had been burnt to the ground, and the earth was salted and ashed for good measure.Ani Bundel
It's a cow's milk soft cheese that's ashed on the outside. (It's kind of like a goth brie.)Erin Edwards

Examples of ash in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
Then, the sight: a corpse, charred black, lying in the middle of street, its bones and feet sticking out of the pile of ash. Samantha Schmidt, Washington Post, 9 Mar. 2024 The disaster also coated Pompeii in a thick layer of ash and pumice, preserving it for thousands of years. Julia Binswanger, Smithsonian Magazine, 5 Mar. 2024 The one whose legs turned nothings into somethings, improvising the Lions’ entire defensive game plan into a pile of ash? Sean Keeler, The Denver Post, 10 Feb. 2024 Enormous clouds of ash spewed into the atmosphere, disrupting air travel across the Atlantic Ocean for months. Laura Baisas, Popular Science, 8 Feb. 2024 Staff are highly trained on material disposal and recycling, along with food composting, and the eco-friendly mind-set makes its way into the dishes too: A spring dessert transformed what would have been discarded corn husks into an ash to top a corn cream made from a stock that used the cobs. Stephanie Breijo, Los Angeles Times, 6 Feb. 2024 The Herculaneum scrolls represent one of archaeology’s most notorious problems—some were dug up in the 18th century, but many of them are basically ash and would fall to pieces if unrolled. David Meyer, Fortune, 6 Feb. 2024 Located in northern Mississippi’s Carroll County, the small Mississippi John Hurt Museum was found engulfed in flames early Wednesday morning, and the building has been reduced to ash. Sonja Anderson, Smithsonian Magazine, 23 Feb. 2024 How to use coal ash The discussion about coal ash is timely because utilities, regulators and policymakers are trying to figure out what to do with the massive pits of ash left behind as coal plants across the country continue to close their doors. Sarah Bowman, The Indianapolis Star, 23 Feb. 2024
Verb
Elsewhere in the Kardashian multiverse, Kylie Jenner and Timothée Chalamet went public with their relationship, kissing and cuddling in the VIP section with Chalamet ashing cigarettes into the crowd … have some more respect for both the artistry and Diana Ross’s lungs. Vulture, 5 Sep. 2023 For charcoal, ignite a large chimney of coals, let burn until lightly ashed over, then distribute the coals evenly over one side of the grill bed; open the bottom grill vents. Christopher Kimball, BostonGlobe.com, 22 Aug. 2023 Many of the people being called on to help played similar roles in the aftermath of the Camp fire, the 2018 disaster in Northern California that killed 85 people and reduced to ash the town of Paradise, in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada. Tim Arango, New York Times, 16 Aug. 2023 Kahele, who moved to Alaska in 2009 from Oahu, said she was devastated by the stories of the fire, which has reduced entire neighborhoods in historic Lahaina to ash this week. Annie Berman, Anchorage Daily News, 11 Aug. 2023 The pandemic has had many people adopting pets and spending money on them ash the search for extra companionship at home. Dallas News, 19 May 2021 Plus, its new Timberline grease-and-keg system automatically vacuums ash into a bucket, for less cleanup and more cooking. Christian Gollayan, Men's Health, 22 Nov. 2022 The more typical scenario of volcanic activity is a prolonged eruption that deposits ash over weeks, according to joint research from Oxford, Bristol and East Anglia universities and the British Geological Survey. Stephen Wright, WSJ, 26 Jan. 2022 Other ways to reuse the tree include: Burning the wood to ash your garden. Emily Deletter, The Enquirer, 27 Dec. 2021

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'ash.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Noun (1)

Middle English asshe, from Old English æsc; akin to Old High German ask ash, Latin ornus mountain ash

Noun (2)

Middle English, usually as plural asshen, askes, axen, ashes, going back to Old English axe, asce (feminine weak noun), going back to Germanic *askōn- (whence also Old Saxon asc-, in ascal "ash-colored," Old High German asca, ascha "ash," Old Norse aska) beside apparent *azgō in Gothic azgo "ash," both of uncertain origin

Note: The older handbooks see the Germanic etymon as a "root extension" of a verbal base *ā̌s- "burn," in current laryngealist terms *h1eh2s-,*h2h̥1s- "make dry through heat" ("[durch Hitze] vertrocknen" in Lexikon der indogermanischen Verben)—see etymology and note at arid. The discrepancy between West and North Germanic ask- (from *azg-?) and Gothic azg- (from *azgh-?) is variously explained. E. Seebold (Etymologisches Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache, 22. Auflage) regards the velar extension as a suffix of appurtenance, the ashes being in effect "what belongs to the hearth/fire." (Also of relevance would be Armenian azazim "become dry, wither," if from *h2h̥1s-gh- —see H. Martirosyan, Etymologial Dictionary of the Armenian Inherited Lexicon, Brill, 2010 s.v.) Seebold sees the "ash" words with long vowels (Hittite ḫāšš- "ashes, dust," Sanskrit ā́saḥ) as parallel derivations, in this case by the employment of lengthened grade. The inconvenient Gothic word azgo is explained as the outcome of a suffixed verbal derivative *haz-d-ko- (on the verbal derivative see azalea). Departing completely from the root-extension hypotheses, G. Kroonen (Etymological Dictionary of Proto-Germanic, Brill, 2013) sees the Germanic word as a possible compound of Indo-European *h2ed- "dry up" and *dhegwh- "burn."

Verb

derivative of ash entry 2

First Known Use

Noun (1)

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun (2)

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

1655, in the meaning defined at sense 3

Time Traveler
The first known use of ash was before the 12th century

Dictionary Entries Near ash

Cite this Entry

“Ash.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/ash. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

ash

1 of 2 noun
1
: any of a genus of trees related to the olive and having bark with grooves and ridges and winged seeds
2
: the hard strong wood of an ash

ash

2 of 2 noun
1
a
: the solid that remains after material is thoroughly burned or is oxidized by chemical means
b
: fine particles of mineral matter from a volcanic vent
2
plural : the remains of something destroyed : ruins
3
plural : the remains of the dead human body especially after cremation
Etymology

Noun

Old English æsc "ash tree"

Noun

Old English asce "the remains of something burned"

Medical Definition

ash

noun
often attributive
1
: the solid residue left when combustible material is thoroughly burned or is oxidized by chemical means
2
ashes plural : the remains of the dead human body after cremation or disintegration

More from Merriam-Webster on ash

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