Word forms: plural, 3rd person singular presenttense flames, present participle flaming, past tense, past participle flamed
1. variable noun
A flame is a hot bright stream of burning gas that comes from something that is burning.
The heat from the flames was so intense that roads melted.
...a huge ball of flame.
Synonyms: fire, light, spark, glow More Synonyms of flame
2. countable noun
A flame is an email message which severely criticizes or attacks someone.
[computing, informal]
The best way to respond to a flame is to ignore it.
Flame is also a verb.
Ever been flamed? [beVERB-ed]
3. verb
If someone's face flames, it suddenly looks red, usually because they are angry.
[written]
Her cheeks flamed an angry red. [V colour]
Christopher's listening face flamed at the contempt. [VERB]
4. countable noun [with supplement]
You can refer to a feeling of passion or anger as a flameof passion or a flameof anger.
...that burning flame of love.
Synonyms: passion, fire, enthusiasm, intensity More Synonyms of flame
5. See also flaming, old flame
6.
See to burst into flames
7.
See to fan the flames
8.
See go up in flames
9.
See in flames
More Synonyms of flame
flame in British English
(fleɪm)
noun
1.
a hot usually luminous body of burning gas often containing small incandescent particles, typically emanating in flickering streams from burning material or produced by a jet of ignited gas
2. (often plural)
the state or condition of burning with flames
to burst into flames
3.
a brilliant light; fiery glow
4.
a.
a strong reddish-orange colour
b.
(as adjective)
a flame carpet
5.
intense passion or ardour; burning emotion
6. informal
a lover or sweetheart (esp in the phrase an old flame)
7. informal
an abusive message posted online or sent by electronic mail, esp to express anger or criticism
verb
8.
to burn or cause to burn brightly; give off or cause to give off flame
9. (intransitive)
to burn or glow as if with fire; become red or fiery
his face flamed with anger
10. (intransitive)
to show great emotion; become angry or excited
11. (transitive)
to apply a flame to (something)
12. (transitive) archaic
to set on fire, either physically or with emotion
13. informal
to post an abusive comment online or send an abusive email
Derived forms
flameless (ˈflameless)
adjective
flamelet (ˈflamelet)
noun
flamelike (ˈflameˌlike)
adjective
flamer (ˈflamer)
noun
flamy (ˈflamy)
adjective
Word origin
C14: from Anglo-French flaume, from Old French flambe, modification of flamble, from Latin flammula a little flame, from flamma flame
flame in American English
(fleɪm)
noun
1.
the burning gas or vapor of a fire, seen as a flickering light of various colors; blaze
2.
a tongue of light rising from a fire
3.
the state of burning with a blaze of light
to burst into flame
4.
a.
a thing like a flame in heat, brilliance, etc.
b.
brilliance or bright coloring
5.
an intense emotion; strong passion
6. Informal
a personal attack, harsh criticism, etc., specif. when communicated by e-mail
7.
a sweetheart
verb intransitiveWord forms: flamed or ˈflaming
8.
to burn with a blaze of light; burst into flame
9.
to light up with color as if blazing; grow red or hot
a face flaming with anger
10.
to show intense emotion; become very excited
verb transitive
11. Rare
to burn or heat with flame
12.
to treat with flame
13. Informal
to attack or harshly criticize, as by e-mail
14. Cookery
to douse with alcoholic liquor and set afire
flame the roast with brandy
SIMILAR WORDS: blaze
Idioms:
flame out
in flames
Word origin
ME < OFr flamme (< L flamma) & flambe < L flammula, dim. of flamma < base of flagrare, to burn: see flagrant
flame in Chemical Engineering
(fleɪm)
Word forms: (regular plural) flames
noun
(Chemical Engineering: General)
A flame is the hot thing you can see when combustion takes place.
In a wood fire, the visible flames are not due to combustion of the wood itself, but rather of the gases released byits pyrolysis.
The flame of a Bunsen burner consists of two cones: the inner one, in which heated but imperfectlyburned gases exist, and the outer one, where oxygen is in excess on the outside edge.
A flame is the hot thing you can see when combustion takes place.
flame arrester
More idioms containing
flame
an old flame
like a moth to a flame
Examples of 'flame' in a sentence
flame
The man in charge turns out to be an old flame from college.
Times, Sunday Times (2017)
Which will come in handy should it too burst into flames.
The Sun (2016)
The pain shot through like a red flame of fire.
The Sun (2016)
He was working under the bonnet when it burst into flames.
The Sun (2016)
Today he meets an old flame.
Times, Sunday Times (2017)
Our investigation found that costumes from major high street retailers were quick to catch fire, with flames spreading fast.
The Sun (2016)
He came to popular attention with the new London bus and the Olympic flame.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
Four and a bit years on, that Olympic flame still burns.
Times, Sunday Times (2017)
Love is a flame that carries on burning!
Times, Sunday Times (2010)
It was like a flame that kept burning.
Christianity Today (2000)
The players rushed off and somebody put out the flames with a fire extinguisher.
John Foot Calcio: A History of Italian Football (2006)
They were an orange flame colour with an outer ring that glowed.
The Sun (2009)
What is humankind but a knot of flames burning with nostalgia for the infinite?
Zindell, David The Broken God (1993)
Put your stock on the stove over a hot flame.
Times, Sunday Times (2011)
Now her daughter is carrying the flame.
Times, Sunday Times (2015)
There were huge flames coming up and they were getting bigger and bigger.
Times, Sunday Times (2011)
It used to be the place where childhood sweethearts could rekindle old flames.
Times, Sunday Times (2014)
Flames and heat fanned around the planet.
Michael Boulter EXTINCTION: Evolution and the End of Man (2002)
Local residents rushed to rescue dogs from the flames before fire engines arrived.
Times, Sunday Times (2014)
And nowhere does that flame burn more brightly than in the courage of our Paralympians.
The Sun (2012)
This will remain a worry from now until the Olympic flame is lit.
Times, Sunday Times (2011)
And should he leave the Olympic flame in the luggage area if he does?
Times, Sunday Times (2008)
The task now England have caught fire is to keep the flame burning.
Times, Sunday Times (2012)
It takes place against a backdrop of ominous skies, with the ensemble dressed in flame colour.
Times, Sunday Times (2012)
A gentle breeze suddenly fanned a flame towards me.
The Sun (2014)
A steady flame of love is ignited when you are introduced to an ambitious Virgo.
The Sun (2010)
In other languages
flame
British English: flame /fleɪm/ NOUN
A flame is a hot bright stream of burning gas that comes from something that is burning.
The heat from the flames was intense.
American English: flame
Arabic: لَهَب
Brazilian Portuguese: chama
Chinese: 火焰
Croatian: plamen
Czech: plamen
Danish: flamme
Dutch: vlam
European Spanish: llama
Finnish: liekki
French: flamme
German: Flamme
Greek: φλόγα
Italian: fiamma
Japanese: 炎
Korean: 불꽃
Norwegian: flamme
Polish: płomień
European Portuguese: chama
Romanian: flacără
Russian: пламя
Latin American Spanish: llama
Swedish: låga
Thai: เปลวไฟ
Turkish: alev
Ukrainian: полум'я
Vietnamese: ngọn lửa
All related terms of 'flame'
flame gun
a type of flame-thrower for destroying garden weeds
flame out
to experience a flameout
flame red
a bright orange-red colour
flame war
an exchange of angry or abusive e-mails
old flame
An old flame is someone with whom you once had a romantic relationship .
flame cell
an organ of excretion in flatworms : a hollow cup-shaped cell containing a bunch of cilia , whose movement draws in waste products and wafts them to the outside through a connecting tubule
flame lamp
a filament lamp in which the bulb resembles the shape of a flame
flame test
a test for detecting the presence of certain metals in compounds by the coloration they give to a flame . Sodium , for example , turns a flame yellow
flame tree
any of various tropical trees with red or orange flowers, such as flame-of-the-forest
flame carbon
a carbon electrode containing metallic salts that colour the arc in a flame-arc light
flame cutting
a method of cutting ferrous metals in which the metal is heated by a torch to about 800°C and is oxidized by a stream of oxygen from the torch
flame stitch
→ bargello (sense 1 ) bargello (sense 2 )
flame-thrower
A flame-thrower is a gun that can send out a stream of burning liquid and that is used as a weapon or for clearing plants from an area of ground .
Olympic flame
→ the Olympic flame
an old flame
someone who you had a romantic relationship with in the past
flame arrester
A flame arrester is a device which stops a flame from spreading along a pipe or tube .
flame-coloured
having a strong reddish-orange colour
flame hardening
the surface hardening of ferrous metals by heating the metal with an oxyacetylene flame followed by rapid cooling
flame retardant
Flame-retardant is the same as → fire-retardant .
flame retarder
a material that, while not incombustible , does not itself maintain combustion without an external heat source and therefore retards the spread of fire
flame cultivator
an implement that kills weeds by scorching them with a directed flow of flaming gas
flame-arc light
an arc light that uses flame carbons to colour the arc
the Olympic flame
the flame that is symbolically lit at the site of the ancient Olympics in Olympia and transported by relay to the place where the Olympic Games are to be held. It is used to ignite a fire in a cauldron that will burn throughout the Games
flameproof
Flameproof cooking dishes can withstand direct heat, so they can be used, for example , on top of a cooker or stove , or under a grill .
flame-of-the-forest
a leguminous tree, Butea frondosa , native to E India and Myanmar , having hanging clusters of scarlet flowers
like a moth to a flame
in a way that shows that someone is strongly attracted to something
flameout
the failure of an aircraft jet engine in flight due to extinction of the flame
palas
an East Indian tree
Chinese translation of 'flame'
flame
(fleɪm)
n(c/u)
[of fire]火焰 (huǒyàn) (团, tuán)
to burst into flames烧(燒)起来(來) (shāo qǐlái)
in flames燃烧(燒)着(著) (ránshāozhe)
an old flame (inf) 老情人 (lǎoqíngrén)
1 (noun)
Definition
a hot luminous body of burning gas coming in flickering streams from burning material
a huge ball of flame
Synonyms
fire
A forest fire is sweeping across the country.
light
Cracks of light filtered through the shutters.
spark
glow
The rising sun cast a golden glow over the fields.
blaze
Two firefighters were hurt in the blaze.
brightness
An astronomer can determine the brightness of each star.
inferno
Rescue workers fought to get to victims inside the inferno.
2 (noun)
Definition
intense passion
that burning flame of love
Synonyms
passion
Her eyes were blazing with passion.
fire
His punishing schedule seemed to dim his fire at times.
enthusiasm
Her lack of enthusiasm filled me with disappointment.
intensity
His intensity, and the ferocity of his feelings alarmed me.
affection
She thought of him with affection.
warmth
fervour
an outbreak of religious fervour
ardour
Their romantic ardour had cooled.
keenness
the keenness of the students
fervency
3 (noun)
(informal)
Every now and then I think of my old flame.
Synonyms
sweetheart
I married my childhood sweetheart, in Liverpool.
partner
lover
They became lovers soon after they first met.
girlfriend
Have you got a girlfriend?
boyfriend
Her children were forbidden from having girlfriends and boyfriends.
squeeze (informal)
beloved
He takes his beloved in his arms.
heart-throb (British)
beau (old-fashioned)
She appeared with her new beau.
ladylove (old-fashioned)
1 (verb)
Definition
to burn brightly
His dark eyes flamed with rage.
Synonyms
burn
I suddenly realized the blanket was burning.
flash
Lightning flashed among the distant dark clouds.
shine
It is a mild morning and the sun is shining.
glow
The night lantern glowed softly in the darkness.
blaze
The log fire was blazing merrily.
flare
Camp fires flared like beacons in the dark.
glare
The light was glaring straight into my eyes.
2 (verb)
Definition
to become red or fiery
Her face flamed a fiery red.
Synonyms
blush
I blushed scarlet at my stupidity.
colour
He couldn't help noticing that she coloured slightly.
glow
Her freckled skin glowed with health.
redden
She reddened instantly.
turn red
go red
3 (verb)
a medium-rare steak, doused and flamed in cognac
Synonyms
ignite
I ignited a fire as it was getting cold in the cottage.