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ash

ash

339 1.0
The gray powder left after something burns
  • noun
  • /æʃ/
translation icon : ceniza
  • The artist used the ash from burnt wood to create a unique texture in her paintings.
  • volcanic ash
  • wood ash
  • fly ash

And he says, who flicks the ashes in a brand new BMW?

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Examples

  • After the campfire died down, we were left with a pile of gray ash that we had to clean up.

  • Volcanic ash can disrupt air travel and cause significant damage to nearby environments.

  • I burned the letter and put the ashes in the bottom of her favorite coffee cup.

    Fiction book (1990)
  • All night, even in closed rooms, ash choked the air.

  • Or scatter his ashes over Division Street?

  • His body's to be burned and his ashes scattered in secret.

  • A strong breeze whipped them with ash, still warm from the Berlin fires.

    Fiction book (1991)
  • Not even ashes left.

  • Prague has risen from its Communist ashes, and it really is a jewel of a city.

    Academic text (2008)
  • The fire was unlit, but the ashes had been cleared and the grate freshly blacked.

    Fiction book (1990)

Synonyms

soot
vsash
35 2.5

A black powder that forms when wood or coal burns and collects on surfaces

is a general gray or black powder left after burning
hollin
vsash
  • Archaic
9.9

A black powder made by burning that covers chimneys

is a broader gray or black residue not limited to chimneys

Compounds

The first day of Lent when Christians get ashes on their foreheads and fast

2 2.5

A tall tree with leaves made of several small parts, grown for wood and in gardens

soda ash
  • Specialized
1 6.0

A white powder used to make soap, glass, and paper

fly ash
  • Specialized
1 6.7

Fine light dust that rises when fuel burns, often in power plants

bone ash
  • Specialized
1 7.4

A white ash left when bones are burned used in fertiliser and bone china

1 8.2

A type of cornbread wrapped in leaves and baked in hot ashes

8.2

A North American tree with strong flexible wood used to make baskets and leaves that turn gold in autumn

8.8

An American ash tree with blue-green leaves and hard brown wood

7.4

A North American tree with dark heavy wood and golden autumn leaves

bone-ash cup
  • Archaic
9.9

A small bowl made from bone ash used to separate precious metals during testing

7.9

A North American tree with dark heavy wood and leaves that turn gold in autumn

9.5

A hurling match between teams, named for wooden sticks called hurleys striking together

A tall European tree with dark green leaves above and pale soft leaves below

downy ash
  • Specialized
9.9

A small American ash tree with soft, fuzzy undersides on its leaves

alpine ash
  • Australian
8.9

A tall Australian tree with hard pinkish or light brown wood used for furniture

A North American tree with leaves made of several small sections and clusters of bright red berries

1.6

A container for household rubbish that collectors empty

3.8

A light pale gray that looks like soft smoke

7.8

A pile of ashes left after burning wood or coal

ash-key
  • Specialized
9.9

A seed with a thin wing from an ash tree that the wind carries

A maple tree with leaves made of several small leaflets like an ash tree

ash bin
  • Archaic
2.3

A container for cold ashes and small pieces of household trash

3.4

A very pale gray color like the powder left after a fire

Ash Can
  • Archaic
9.5

A style of early 1900s American painting showing real, often hard city life

4.4

A pile of ashes left after something has been burned

6.9

A metal tray under a stove that holds ashes so you can remove them

9.5

A small ash tree with many branches that grows in dry parts of the southwestern United States and northwest Mexico

6.1

A tall European tree with dark green leaves that are pale underneath

A small tree from Europe and Asia with leaves made of many small leaflets and clusters of orange-red berries

A tree with many white flowers often grown for decoration

9.9

A southern Mediterranean tree with white fragrant flowers and a sweet sap used as a sweetener

mountain ash
  • Australian
5.0

A tree with divided leaves, white spring flowers, and red or orange berries that attract birds

mountain ash
  • Australian
7.7

A very tall Australian tree with strong wood often used for furniture and building

6.8

A North American ash tree with lighter colour under its leaves

9.7

A spreading North American tree with heavy dark wood and leaves that turn gold in autumn

prickly ash
  • Australian
9.8

An Australian tree with leaves that have sharp teeth and thin spikes of white flowers

9.9

A tree or shrub with spiny branches often used for its strong-smelling bark

pumpkin ash
  • Specialized
9.9

A tree that loses its leaves, has a swollen trunk base, and grows in swamps in the United States

red ash
  • Specialized
8.1

A North American tree with soft young branches and lower leaf surfaces often found in wet areas

7.7

A tree that loses its leaves each year with hard, light wood used for furniture and sports equipment

pearl ash
  • Archaic
9.9

A white powder made from wood ashes that people used long ago for baking and soap making

9.9

A North American swamp shrub with divided leaves and greenish-white berries that produces oil causing skin rashes

sea ash
  • US
9.9

A small bush or tree with sharp branches and yellow flowers with a pleasant smell in eastern North America

7.5

A tree from the southern United States with light wood used for furniture and guitars

A large port city in northwest Lebanon on the Mediterranean

silver ash
  • Australian
9.9

An Australian tree with pale wood used for furniture

A small tree from the western coast of North America with groups of red berries

white ash
  • Australian
7.6

A small to medium tree from Australia and Tasmania with smooth light-grey bark that peels in strips

6.3

A North American tree with pale green or silvery leaf undersides and hard brown wood used for furniture

white mountain ash
  • Specialized
7.9

A large tree with dark lower bark and smooth white upper bark used for strong wood

How Burned

ash
339 1.0
burn
157 1.8
char
4 6.2
scorch
4 4.8
singe
1 5.3

Surface Forms

ash singular
ashes plural

Etymology

Ash (powder) comes from old words for what is left after a fire — the gray or black powder — so when something burns and leaves that powder, we call it 'ash'.