SEAR • E-FREE TRANSLATION.COM • Definition of Sear

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noun

Sear n. The catch in a gunlock by which the hammer is held cocked or half cocked.

Sear spring, the spring which causes the sear to catch in the notches by which the hammer is held.

verb

Sear v. t. (past & past part. seared; pres. part. searing)

To wither; to dry up.

To burn (the surface of) to dryness and hardness; to cauterize; to expose to a degree of heat such as changes the color or the hardness and texture of the surface; to scorch; to make callous; as, to sear the skin or flesh. Also used figuratively. "I'm seared with burning steel." "It was in vain that the amiable divine tried to give salutary pain to that seared conscience." "The discipline of war, being a discipline in destruction of life, is a discipline in callousness. Whatever sympathies exist are seared." Note: Sear is allied to scorch in signification; but it is applied primarily to animal flesh, and has special reference to the effect of heat in marking the surface hard. Scorch is applied to flesh, cloth, or any other substance, and has no reference to the effect of hardness.

To sear up, to close by searing. "Cherish veins of good humor, and sear up those of ill."

adjective

Sere, Sear adj. Dry; withered; no longer green; applied to leaves. "I have lived long enough; my way of life Is fall'n into the sear, the yellow leaf."

See images of 'Sear'

Etymology of 'Sear'

Collaborative International Dictionary of English 0.48

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"Sear" Quotes from Famous Books

... thy window closed of late? And why thy garden in its sear? O house! where doth thy master wait? I only ...

— Poems • Victor Hugo

... Indian across the face. The old Indian stepped back and stiffened. His sunken eyes blazed with hatred, but he made no sound or sign. He knew that if he as much as lifted his hand the men would kill him. To him they were the law, searching for a fugitive. The welt across his face burned like the sear of fire—the cowardly brand of hatred on the impassive face of primitive fortitude! This because he had fed a hungry man and delayed ...

— The Ridin' Kid from Powder River • Henry Herbert Knibbs

... see the stare of the small blue eyes, The tiny fingers of whitest wax That will point at you, or the wound that lies, A clot of red in her fairy flax? Will the beads that burst on your brows be hot As mothers' tears that are newly shed? Will each sear and burn like a blazing dot That eats its way through ...

— New York Times Current History; The European War, Vol 2, No. 4, July, 1915 - April-September, 1915 • Various

... two blessed spirits, lying full in the sight and light of our God,—as indeed what else are we?—warming our hearts in his presence and peace; and that we have but to rise and spread our wings to sear aloft and find—what shall it be, my lady? Worlds upon worlds? No, no. What are worlds upon worlds in infinite show until we have seen the face of the ...

— The Marquis of Lossie • George MacDonald

... said, quietly-" up thar," pointing to a wooded mountain, the top of which was lost in mist. The girl's attitude changed instantly into - vague alarm, and her eyes flashed upon Raines as though they would sear their way into the meaning hidden in his quiet face. Gradually his motive seemed to become clear, and she advanced a ...

— A Mountain Europa • John Fox Jr.

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