furnacen.

Brit.

/ˈfəːnᵻs/, U.S.

/ˈfərnəs/

Forms: Middle English furneise, Middle English f(o)urneys(e, fo(u)rnays(e, fournas, fornayce, fornes, (Middle English fornas, furnasee), Middle English–1500s forneys(e, f(o)urneis, furnes(s, (Middle English furnoys, 1500s furneyse, fournes), 1500s–1600s fornace, (1500s fournace, furnise), 1500s– furnace.

Etymology: < Old French fornais, masculine (= Provençal fornatz, fornaz, Italian fornace), also fornaise (modern French fournaise, = Spanish hornaza), representing Latin fornāc-em, fornax, feminine, < fornus, furnus, oven.

a. An apparatus consisting essentially of a chamber to contain combustibles for the purpose of subjecting minerals, metals, etc. to the continuous action of intense heat.In modern use it chiefly denotes a building of masonry lined with firebrick, used for metallurgical operations, the baking of pottery, or the like; but it is also applied to smaller apparatus (usually constructed of iron) used in chemistry, assaying, etc.

ΘΚΠ

society > occupation and work > equipment > furnace or kiln > furnace > [noun]

oveneOE

furnacea1225

chimney1340

fire-stock1440

firework1606

fire room1657

firehole1682

poil1756

smut1819

blast-pot1887

a1225 Juliana 32 As þu..te þreo children..biwistest unweommet from þe ferliche fur of þe furneise.

a1340 R. Rolle Psalter xvi. 4 Þe fournas þat purges metall.

c1384 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) (Douce 369(2)) (1850) Matt. vi. 30 The heye of the feeld, that to day is, and to morwe is sente in to the fourneyse.

1413 Pilgr. Sowle (1483) iii. vii. 55 With fyre pykes they cast them in the forneis.

1535 Bible (Coverdale) Prov. xvii. A Like as syluer is tried in the fyre and golde in the fornace.

?1543 T. Phaer tr. J. Goeurot Regiment of Lyfe sig. Iiij^v Baken or dryed, as claye is in the furneys.

a1616 W. Shakespeare As you like It (1623) ii. vii. 148 The Louer, Sighing like Furnace .

1691 J. Evelyn Kalendarium Hortense (ed. 8) 155 A plain single Furnace, (such as Chymists use in their Laboratories for common Operations).

1725 D. Defoe New Voy. round World ii. 103 Running like Metal out of a Furnace.

1837 N. Whittock et al. Compl. Bk. Trades (1842) 130 The furnaces, retorts and other apparatus are too numerous to be described.

1872 H. T. Ellacombe Church Bells Devon i. 11 On the signal being given, the furnaces were tapped, and the metal flowed.

b. transferred. The fire of a volcano; the volcano itself.

ΘΚΠ

the world > the earth > land > landscape > high land > volcano > [noun]

Vulcan?a1425

volcan1577

volcano1613

furnace1660

volcanello1669

volcano mountain1693

pseudo-volcano1794

mud volcano1816

salse1831

stratovolcano1894

shield volcano1911

the world > the earth > structure of the earth > constituent materials > ejected volcanic material > [noun] > volcanic fire

fireeOE

furnace1660

wildfire1672

fire spout1739

1660 F. Brooke tr. V. Le Blanc World Surveyed 376 One of the most conspicuous furnaces of the Indies..for the hill..hath five mouths..for casting out fire.

1796 H. Hunter tr. J.-H. B. de Saint-Pierre Stud. Nature (1799) I. 344 Volcanos must have emitted their fiery currents more frequently in the earlier ages, when..the Ocean, loaded with it's vegetable spoils, supplied more abundant matter to their furnaces.

1804 C. B. Brown tr. C. F. de Volney View Soil & Climate U.S.A. 99 The existence of this furnace agrees with all the traces of earthquakes hitherto mentioned.

c. figurative, esp. used to express any severe test or trial. Also, a place of excessive heat; a ‘hotbed’.

ΘΚΠ

the world > action or operation > endeavour > trial or experiment > trial, test, or testing > [noun] > severe test

furnace1340

the world > matter > properties of materials > temperature > heat > [noun] > great or intense heat > places of

tropic1600

furnace1744

oven?1796

1340 Ayenbite (1866) 131 Þise wordle þet ne is bote..a fornays anhet mid uer of zenne and of zorȝe.

1382 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) Deut. iv. 20 The Lord took ȝow, and ladde ȝow oute fro the yren forneys of Egipte.

1497 J. Alcock Mons Perfeccionis (de Worde) C iij He lyved here in purgatory and in the fornays of temptacyon.

1600 E. Fairfax tr. T. Tasso Godfrey of Bulloigne xv. l. 276 He..open set Of his broad gaping iawes the fornace wide.

1611 Bible (King James) Isa. xlviii. 10 I haue chosen thee in the fornace of affliction.

1744 J. Thomson Summer in Seasons (new ed.) 94 Breath'd hot, From all the boundless Furnace of the Sky..A suffocating Wind the Pilgrim smites With instant Death.

1844 A. W. Kinglake Eothen xxiv. 360 Nablous is the very furnace of Mahometan bigotry.

†2. Applied to an oven or chamber for producing a moderate continuous heat; in quots. an incubating chamber. Obsolete.

ΘΚΠ

the world > food and drink > farming > animal husbandry > keeping birds > [noun] > incubator or brooder

furnacec1400

brood-oven1737

eccaleobion1839

hatcher1856

incubator1857

brooder1880

brood-chamber1888

the world > matter > properties of materials > temperature > heat > heating or making hot > that which or one who heats > [noun] > a device for heating or warming > chamber or box for keeping anything warm

furnacec1400

stow1614

stove1640

stove-tub1797

stove-room1825

Norwegian stove1873

c1400 Mandeville's Trav. (1839) v. 49 There is a comoun Hows in that Cytee, that is alle ffulle of smale Furneys; and thidre bryngen Wommen of the Toun here Eyren of Hennes, of Gees and of Dokes, for to ben put in to tho Furneyses.

1585 T. Washington tr. N. de Nicolay Nauigations Turkie i. viii. 7 b Furnaces, made in maner like unto..stoves of Germanie in the whiche with a small heate they do..hatch their egges.

1616 Trav. Eng. Pilgr. in Harl. Misc. I. 338 The country people bring their eggs..to this place, where there is an oven, or furnace, purposely kept temperately warm; and the furner, or master thereof standeth ready at a little door, to receive the eggs.

3. A closed fireplace for heating a building by means of hot-air or hot-water pipes; also, ‘the fireplace of a marine boiler’ (Adm. Smyth).

ΘΚΠ

the world > matter > properties of materials > temperature > heat > heating or making hot > that which or one who heats > [noun] > a device for heating or warming > devices for heating buildings, rooms, etc. > stove

stove1604

furnace1691

fire stove1699

stow1730

poil1756

stove-fire1769

hypocaust1829

magazine stove1875

1691 J. Evelyn Diary (1955) V. 80 The Effect of my Greenhouse Furnace.

1881 Fawkes Horticult. Build. 218 Stoke~holes, furnaces, and boilers, should always be protected by an enclosed shed from rain and wind.

4. A boiler, cauldron, crucible. Obsolete exc. dialect. (See quots. 1884, 1888.)

ΘΚΠ

society > occupation and work > equipment > receptacle or container > vessel > vessel in which liquid is boiled > [noun]

furnacec1290

boiler1591

water boiler1774

pressure boiler1891

c1290 S. Eng. Leg. I. 295/61 A forneis he let maken of bras: and fullen it ful of led.

c1400 (?c1380) Cleanness l. 1011 As a fornes ful of flot þat vpon fyr boyles.

c1400 Lanfranc's Cirurg. 171 Þe heete of þe lyvere makiþ þe stomac to seþe as fier makiþ a furneis to seþe.

1494 in W. H. Stevenson Rec. Borough Nottingham (1885) III. 30 Unum fornes de plumbo.

1540 in E. Hobhouse Church-wardens' Accts. (1890) 154 To sawyng y^e quyrbys to y^e Furnes of Chyrche howse vj^d.

a1661 T. Fuller Worthies (1662) Wales 6 Seeth all these [sc. herbs] (being well washed) in a Furnace of fair water.

1884 R. Lawson Upton-on-Severn Words & Phrases Furnace, a large boiler set in brickwork, for brewing, making soup, &c.

1888 F. T. Elworthy W. Somerset Word-bk. Galvanized iron Furnace, 27 gals...11s. 9d.

Compounds

C1. attributive and in other combinations.

furnace air-pipe n.

ΚΠ

1691 J. Evelyn Kalendarium Hortense (ed. 8) 160 The Furnace Air-pipes..are placed to pass through the Fire and Brick-work.

furnace-chink n.

ΚΠ

a1849 J. C. Mangan Poems (1859) 35 That the flame, with subtle flood, Through the furnace-chink may fly.

furnace-coke n.

ΚΠ

1889 Daily News 16 Dec. 2/7 This week furnace coke has been selling at 22s. 6d. to 23s. per ton at the ovens.

furnace-feeder n.

ΚΠ

1858 P. L. Simmonds Dict. Trade Products Furnace-feeder, a stoker or fireman; one who supplies fuel to the furnace.

furnace-filler n.

ΚΠ

1892 Labour Comm. Gloss. Furnace Fillers, men who remain at the top of the furnace and empty therein the loaded barrows sent up from the bottom.

furnace-fire n.

ΚΠ

1645 J. Howell Epistolæ Ho-elianæ i. xxviii. 55 If this small Furnace-fire hath vertue to convert such a small lump of Dark Dust and Sand into such a specious clear Body as Crystall.

furnace-firer n.

ΚΠ

1889 Daily News 4 Dec. 5/6 A furnace firer..stated that [etc.].

furnace-glow n.

ΚΠ

1863–65 J. Thomson Sunday at Hampstead vi The East resumes its furnace-glow.

furnace-heat n.

ΚΠ

1849 E. E. Napier Excursions Southern Afr. II. 407 Alternate furnace heat and chilly dampness.

furnace-house n.

ΚΠ

1882 ‘Ouida’ In Maremma I. 62 A furnace-house to make the salt that was raked upon the beach.

furnace-smoke n.

ΚΠ

1797 College: a Satire 20 Like furnace-smoke in volumes rolling down.

furnace-burning adj.

ΚΠ

1595 W. Shakespeare Henry VI, Pt. 3 ii. i. 80 All my breasts moisture Scarse serues to quench my furnace burning hart.

furnace-like adj.

ΚΠ

1577 B. Googe tr. C. Heresbach Foure Bks. Husbandry ii. f. 76^v The furrowe must be made Furnase like, strayght aboue, and broade in the bottome.

1825 R. Heber Jrnl. 25 Mar. in Narr. Journey Upper Provinces India (1828) II. 146 Such a furnace-like climate.

furnace-ward adv.

ΚΠ

c1420 Pallad. on Husb. i. 1087 First floore hit ij feet thicke enclynynge softe The fourneis ward.

C2.

furnace-bar n. = fire bar n. at fire n. and int. Compounds 2a.

ΘΚΠ

society > occupation and work > equipment > furnace or kiln > furnace > parts of furnace > [noun] > grate > bar of

bar1678

fire bar1844

furnace-bar1888

1888 Lockwood's Dict. Mech. Engin. Furnace Bars.

furnace-bridge n. (see quot.).

ΘΚΠ

society > occupation and work > equipment > furnace or kiln > furnace > parts of furnace > [noun] > walls or barriers in furnaces

fireback1566

spirit-plate1686

hem1693

fire bridge1821

bridge1823

water bridge1837

furnace-bridge1874

1874 E. H. Knight Pract. Dict. Mech. I. 926/2 Furnace-Bridge, a barrier of fire-bricks or of iron plates containing water thrown across the furnace at the extreme end of the fire-bars, to prevent the fuel being carried into the flues, and to quicken the draft by contracting the area.

furnace cadmia n. (also furnace cadmium) (see quot.).

ΘΚΠ

society > occupation and work > materials > derived or manufactured material > materials produced from metalworking > [noun] > oxide of zinc

philosophic cotton1753

philosophic wool1758

philosophical wool1771

philosophers' woolc1865

philosophic(al) woolc1865

furnace cadmia1881

1881 Trans. Amer. Inst. Mining Engineers 1880–1 9 136 Furnace cadmium or cadmia, the oxide of zinc which accumulates in the chimneys of furnaces smelting zinciferous ores.

furnace-drift n. (see quot.).

ΘΚΠ

society > occupation and work > workplace > places where raw materials are extracted > mine > [noun] > passage > ventilation passages or openings

througher1645

thirling1686

air-pit1709

horse-head1747

sollar1778

airway1800

wind-hole1802

bearing door1813

air course1814

downcast shaft1814

upcast shaft (or pit)1816

buze1823

air road1832

raggling1839

thirl1847

brattice1849

intake1849

run1849

trapdoor1849

skailing1850

return1851

wind-road1860

breakthrough1875

wind-way1875

breast1882

cross-heading1883

skail-door1883

U.C.1883

undercast1883

vent1886

furnace-drift1892

1892 R. O. Heslop Northumberland Words Furnace-drift, a passage leading into an ‘upcast’ pit provided with a furnace for the purpose of ventilating the mine.

† furnace-earth n. Obsolete (see quot.).

ΘΚΠ

society > occupation and work > materials > types of material generally > [noun] > material for lining or building up a furnace

furnace-earth1612

fix1873

bulldog1881

fettle1894

1612 S. Sturtevant Metallica xv. 108 Furnace-earths..where-withall you build vp your Furnaces.

furnace line n. a line in a furnace spectrum.

ΘΚΠ

the world > matter > physics > atomic physics > decomposition of light, spectrum > [noun] > spectral line > emitted by substance in furnace

furnace line1911

the world > matter > physics > electromagnetic radiation > light > chromatism > [noun] > spectrum > band or line forming part of > specific line or lines

absorption line1861

triplet1879

furnace line1911

singlet1920

progression1926

1911 Contribs. Mt. Wilson Solar Observ. III. 6 The quality of the furnace lines for measurement is in general good.

1922 A. S. Eddington in Encycl. Brit. XXX. 298/2 The ‘enhanced lines’ of strontium 4077 and 4215 are relatively strong in stars of high luminosity; whereas the ‘furnace lines’ of strontium 4607 and calcium 4455 behave in the reverse manner.

furnaceman n. one who tends a furnace.

ΘΚΠ

society > occupation and work > worker > workers according to type of work > manual or industrial worker > workers with specific tools or equipment > [noun] > with ovens or furnaces

fire beater1332

fireman1377

oven-stirrer1611

stoker1660

teaser1797

oven-man1832

coal passer1851

furnacer1853

furnaceman1883

fire beater1895

1883 W. S. Gresley Gloss. Terms Coal Mining Furnaceman.

1884 Birmingham Daily Post 23 Feb. 3/5 Wanted two little Mill Furnacemen.

Categories »

furnace-pumice n. Metallurgy ‘a slag often produced in smelting pisolitic iron ores, having the cellular appearance of pumice-stone’ (Cassell).

furnace spectrum n. the spectrum of the light emitted by a substance when heated in an electric furnace.

ΚΠ

1905 Astrophysical Jrnl. 21 256 The oven spectrum shows new groups of bands in the spectra of Ca, Sr, Ba, and Cu.]

1911 Contribs. Mt. Wilson Solar Observ. 16 The..strong lines..are given by the core of the arc, and appear in the furnace spectrum very faintly at the highest temperatures.

1943 Astrophys. Jrnl. 98 33 For the furnace spectrum, dysprosium was vaporized in the carbon-tube vacuum furnace at a temperature near 2600°C.

furnace-tube n. (see quot.).

ΘΚΠ

society > occupation and work > equipment > machine > machines which impart power > boiler > [noun] > parts of > tubes or pipes

water tube1720

tube1833

water head1856

worm1857

cross-tubea1884

furnace-tube1888

feed collector1902

1888 Lockwood's Dict. Mech. Engin. Furnace-tube, the tube within which the fuel is enclosed in an internally fired boiler.

This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1898; most recently modified version published online June 2022).

furnacev.

Brit.

/ˈfəːnᵻs/, U.S.

/ˈfərnəs/

Etymology: < furnace n.

a. transitive. To exhale like a furnace.

ΘΚΠ

the world > movement > motion in a certain direction > going or coming out > letting or sending out > let or send out [verb (transitive)] > emit > as from a furnace

furnace1598

1598 G. Chapman in tr. Homer Achilles Shield Ep. Ded. A iv b That raging vlcer, which..Furnaceth the vniuersall sighes and complaintes of this transposed world.

a1616 W. Shakespeare Cymbeline (1623) i. vi. 67 He furnaces The thicke sighes from him.

b. intransitive. To issue as from a furnace.

ΘΚΠ

the world > movement > motion in a certain direction > going or coming out > go or come out [verb (intransitive)] > as from a furnace

furnace1625

1625 F. Quarles Sions Sonets xx. sig. E2 Represse those flames, that furnace from thine eye.

2. transitive. To subject to the heat of a furnace.

ΘΚΠ

the world > matter > properties of materials > temperature > heat > heating or making hot > subjection or exposure to heat or fire > subject or expose to heat or fire [verb (transitive)] > to heat of furnace

furnace1612

infurnace1626

1612² [see furnacing n. at Derivatives].

1842 T. Graham Elements Chem. ii. v. 474 It has been proposed, instead of furnacing the sulphate of soda, to decompose it by caustic barytes.

1876 Catal. Special Loan Coll. Sci. Apparatus S. Kensington Mus. No. 2726. This mixture is furnaced during a period of 5¾ hours.

figurative.1790 J. Williams Shrove Tuesday (1794) 33 The faithful must be damn'd before they die, And, like th' asbestos, furnac'd to be white.1848 J. R. Lowell Fable for Critics in Poems (1890) III. 50 Every word that he speaks has been fierily furnaced In the blast of a life that has struggled in earnest.

3. To make a furnace in.

ΚΠ

1823 C. Lamb in London Mag. July 21/1 A great sea-chimæra, chimneying and furnacing the deep.

Derivatives

ˈfurnaced adj. in quot. figurative.

ΘΚΠ

the world > matter > properties of materials > temperature > heat > heating or making hot > subjection or exposure to heat or fire > [adjective] > subjected to heat of furnace

furnaced1862

1862 H. C. Kendall Fainting by Way 5 Poems 20 Furnaced waste lands..like to stony billows rolled.

1869 H. C. Kendall Glen of Arrawatta 167 In soft Australian nights; And through the furnaced noons.

ˈfurnacing n. also attributive.

ΘΚΠ

the world > matter > properties of materials > temperature > heat > heating or making hot > subjection or exposure to heat or fire > [noun] > to heat of furnace

furnacing1612

1612 S. Sturtevant Metallica vi. 58 All kinde of ouens, lamps, stoues, kilnes, hearths, all which we generally comprehend vnder the name of Furnacing.

1612 S. Sturtevant Metallica vi. 58 Furnacing may..bee briefely touched as being a necessarie instrument in most inuentions.

1880 J. Lomas Man. Alkali Trade 4 The manufacturer should be..able..to..perform the furnacing operation himself.

ˈfurnacer n.

ΘΚΠ