“smoke” – English explanatory dictionary

n. [AS. smoca, fr. smeócan to smoke; akin to LG. & D. smook smoke, Dan. smög, G. schmauch, and perh. to Gr. to burn in a smoldering fire; cf. Lith. smaugti to choke.]
1. The visible exhalation, vapor, or substance that escapes, or expelled, from a burning body, especially from burning vegetable matter, as wood, coal, peat, or the like. The gases of hydrocarbons, raised to a red heat or thereabouts, without a mixture of air enough to produce combustion, disengage their carbon in a fine powder, forming smoke. The disengaged carbon when deposited on solid bodies is soot.
2. That which resembles smoke; a vapor; a mist.
3. Anything unsubstantial, as idle talk. Shak.
4. The act of smoking, esp. of smoking tobacco; as to have a smoke. [Colloq.] Smoke is sometimes joined with other word. forming self-explaining compounds; as smoke-consuming, smoke- dried, smoke-stained, etc. Smoke arch, the smoke box of a locomotive. — Smoke ball (Mil.), a ball or case containing a composition which, when it burns, sends forth thick smoke. — Smoke black, lampblack. [Obs.] — Smoke board, a board suspended before a fireplace to prevent the smoke from coming out into the room. — Smoke box, a chamber in a boiler, where the smoke, etc., from the furnace is collected before going out at the chimney. — Smoke sail (Naut.), a small sail in the lee of the galley stovepipe, to prevent the smoke from annoying people on deck. — Smoke tree (Bot.), a shrub (Rhus Cotinus) in which the flowers are mostly abortive and the panicles transformed into tangles of plumose pedicels looking like wreaths of smoke. — To end in smoke, to burned; hence, to be destroyed or ruined; figuratively, to come to nothing. Syn. — Fume; reek; vapor.

noun 1. a white, grey or black product formed of small particles, given off by something that is burning ○ The restaurant was full of cigarette smoke. ○ Clouds of smoke were pouring out of the upstairs windows. ○ Two people died from inhaling toxic smoke. ○ Smoke detectors are fitted in all the rooms. 2. the time when you are smoking a cigarette ○ Cigarettes aren’t allowed in the office, so everyone goes outside for a quick smoke. ○ I’m dying for a smoke! ■ verb 1. to give off smoke ○ Two days after the fire, the ruins of the factory were still smoking. □ the chimney smokes the fire sends smoke into the room instead of taking it up the chimney 2. to breathe in smoke from your cigarette, cigar or pipe ○ Everyone was smoking even though the signs said ‘no smoking’. ○ She doesn’t smoke much. ○ You shouldn’t smoke if you want to play football. ○ I’ve never seen her smoking a cigar before. □ he smokes like a chimney he smokes a lot of cigarettes 3. to preserve food such as meat, fish, bacon or cheese by hanging it in the smoke from a fire ○ a factory where they smoke fish § to go up in smoke 1. to be burnt ○ His entire art collection went up in smoke in the fire. 2. to fail, not to work ○ All her plans for buying a bigger house have gone up in smoke.

v. t. 1. To apply smoke to; to hang in smoke; to disinfect, to cure, etc., by smoke; as to smoke or fumigate infected clothing; to smoke beef or hams for preservation.
2. To fill or scent with smoke; hence, to fill with incense; to perfume. ´Smoking the temple.´ Chaucer.
3. To smell out; to hunt out; to find out; to detect. “I alone
Smoked his true person, talked with him.” Chapman. “He was first smoked by the old Lord Lafeu.” Shak. “Upon that … I began to smoke that they were a parcel of mummers.” Addison.
4. To ridicule to the face; to quiz. [Old Slang]
5. To inhale and puff out the smoke of, as tobacco; to burn or use in smoking; as to smoke a pipe or a cigar.
6. To subject to the operation of smoke, for the purpose of annoying or driving out; — often with out; as to smoke a woodchuck out of his burrow.

v. i. [imp. & p. p. Smoked p. pr. & vb n. Smoking.] [AS. smocian; akin to D. smoken, G. schmauchen, Dan. smöge. See Smoke, n.]
1. To emit smoke; to throw off volatile matter in the form of vapor or exhalation; to reek. “Hard by a cottage chimney smokes.” Milton.
2. Hence, to burn; to be kindled; to rage. “The anger of the Lord and his jealousy shall smoke agains. that man.” Deut. xxix. 20.
3. To raise a dust or smoke by rapid motion. “Proud of his steeds, he smokes along the field.” Dryden.
4. To draw into the mouth the smoke of tobacco burning in a pipe or in the form of a cigar, cigarette, etc.; to habitually use tobacco in this manner.
5. To suffer severely; to be punished. “Some of you shall smoke for it in Rome.” Shak.

London. From the peculiar dense cloud which overhangs London.
The metropolis is by no means so smoky as Sheffield, Birmingham, &c.;
yet country-people, when going to London, frequently say they are on
their way to the SMOKE; and Londoners, when leaving for the country, say
they are going out of the SMOKE.

to detect, or penetrate an artifice. Originally used by London
detectives, probably on account of their clouded intellects.