smolder

verb

smol·​der ˈsmōl-dər 

variants or smoulder

smoldered or smouldered; smoldering or smouldering ˈsmōl-d(ə-)riŋ 

intransitive verb

1

a

: to burn sluggishly, without flame, and often with much smoke

b

: to be consumed by smoldering

—often used with out

2

: to exist in a state of suppressed activity

hostilities smoldered for years

3

: to show suppressed anger, hate, or jealousy

eyes smoldering with hate

Examples of smolder in a Sentence

The remains of the campfire smoldered.

Her eyes smoldered with anger.

Anger smoldered in my heart.

Recent Examples on the Web

Throughout the romantic drama, Tita and Pedro’s chemistry continues to heighten, which allows the longing between the characters to smolder across the years. —Aramide Tinubu, Variety, 3 Nov. 2024

State of play: As of late Thursday morning, the fire at Marck Industries that started Wednesday was contained but continuing to smolder, Rogers deputy fire chief Dusty Qualls told Axios. —Alex Golden, Axios, 17 Oct. 2024

After a week of smoldering heat in the Bay Area, Friday was likely to continue a slow cooling trend, extending the slight drop in temperatures that began on Thursday, forecasters said. —Nollyanne Delacruz, The Mercury News, 3 Oct. 2024

The same year that Vertigo was released, Kim Novak and Jimmy Stewart took their smoldering chemistry to Bell Book and Candle. —Gwen Ihnat, EW.com, 25 Sep. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Middle English smolderen to smother, from smolder smoke, smudge; akin to Middle Dutch smōlen to smolder

First Known Use

1529, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Kids Definition

smolder

1 of 2 noun

smol·​der

variants or smoulder

ˈsmōl-dər

: a slow smoky fire

smolder

2 of 2 verb

variants or smoulder

smoldered or smouldered; smoldering or smouldering

-d(ə-)riŋ

1

: to burn slowly with smoke and usually without flame

fire was smoldering in the pit

2

: to exist or continue in a hidden or controlled state

discontent smoldered for years before the revolt

3

: to burn inwardly

anger smoldered in my heart