char

¹

[ chahr ]

verb (used with object)

, charred, char·ring.

1. to burn or reduce to charcoal:

   The fire charred the paper.

2. to burn slightly; scorch:

   The flame charred the steak.

   Synonyms: sear, singe

verb (used without object)

, charred, char·ring.

1. to become charred.

noun

1. a charred material or surface.
2. charcoal ( def 1 ).
3. a superior carbon-rich fuel, a by-product of the conversion of coal into gaseous or liquid fuel.

char

²

or charr

[ chahr ]

noun

, plural (especially collectively) char, (especially referring to two or more kinds or species) chars.

1. any trout of the genus Salvelinus (or Cristovomer ), especially the Arctic char.

char

³

[ chahr ]

noun

1. a charwoman.
2. a task, especially a household chore.
3. chars, odd jobs, especially of housework, for which one is paid by the hour or day.

verb (used without object)

, charred, char·ring.

1. to work at housecleaning by the day or hour; hire oneself out to do odd jobs.

verb (used with object)

, charred, char·ring.

1. to do (housework, odd jobs, or chores); clean or repair.

char

⁴

[ chahr ]

noun

, British Informal.

1. tea.

Char

⁵

[ shar ]

noun

1. Re·né [r, uh, -, ney], 1907–1988, French poet.

char.

⁶

abbreviation for

1. character.
2. charter.

char

¹

/ tʃɑː /

noun

1. informal.
   short for charwoman

verb

1. informal.
   to do housework, cleaning, etc, as a job

char

²

/ tʃɑː /

verb

1. to burn or be burned partially, esp so as to blacken the surface; scorch
2. tr to reduce (wood) to charcoal by partial combustion

char

³

/ tʃɑː /

noun

1. a slang word for tea

char

⁴

/ tʃɑː /

noun

1. any of various troutlike fishes of the genus Salvelinus, esp S. alpinus, occurring in cold lakes and northern seas: family Salmonidae (salmon)

Word History and Origins

Origin of char¹

First recorded in 1670–80; apparently extracted from charcoal; chark

Origin of char²

First recorded in 1655–65; perhaps unattested Old English ceorra literally, “turner,” derivative of ceorran “to turn,” it being thought of as swimming to and fro time and again; char ³

Origin of char³

First recorded in 1375–1425; late Middle English, Old English cerr, cierr “turn, time, occasion, affair,” derivative of cierran “to turn”

Origin of char⁴

First recorded in 1915–20; from Hindi cā “tea” ( tea ); for spelling with r arvo, Parcheesi ( def )

Word History and Origins

Origin of char¹

C18: from Old English cerr

Origin of char²

C17: short for charcoal

Origin of char³

from Chinese ch'a

Origin of char⁴

C17: of unknown origin

Example Sentences

In the meantime, our leftovers continue to clog waterways, char the skies with toxic smoke and ruin places where other people live.

From Los Angeles Times

For more than 20 years, salmon caught outside their typical range have been recorded by subsistence harvesters who target other Arctic species, including Dolly Varden and Arctic char.

From Science Daily

The pizza, which is first baked in a deck oven before being finished in a wood-fired oven to give the bubbly crust a kiss of char, has a great chew.

From Seattle Times

When it floods, residents of Char islands often row in makeshift rafts to dry land, and return once it subsides.

From Seattle Times

The other was freshly tossed in a kerosene-fueled wok, yielding glossy, chewy noodles bursting with soy sauce, blackened slivers of onion, and, most importantly, that elusive, umami-filled char called wok hei.

From Salon

Related Words

• burn