char

/tʃɑr/

/tʃɑ/

Other forms: charred; charing; charring; chars

To char is to burn or blacken something so that it’s like charcoal but still tasty. A char is something that has been burned in this way.

To char is to burn something on the outside. If you've ever eaten a hot dog or hamburger cooked over an open flame, it was charred. Many people like the taste of char-grilled meat. To char doesn’t usually mean to burn all the way, just enough to blacken. Unfortunately, char can also mean to reduce to charcoal — if there's a house fire, couches and chairs could be charred. Not so delicious.

Definitions of char

1. verb

   burn to charcoal
   “Without a drenching rain, the forest fire will char everything”

   synonyms: coal

   type of:

   burn, combust

   cause to burn or combust
2. verb

   burn slightly and superficially so as to affect color
   “The fire charred the ceiling above the mantelpiece”

   synonyms: blacken, scorch, sear

   types:

   singe, swinge

   burn superficially or lightly

   type of:

   burn

   burn with heat, fire, or radiation
3. noun

   a charred substance
   types:

   animal black, animal charcoal, bone black, bone char

   black substance containing char in the form of carbonized bone; used as a black pigment

   snuff

   the charred portion of a candlewick

   type of:

   C, atomic number 6, carbon

   an abundant nonmetallic tetravalent element occurring in three allotropic forms: amorphous carbon and graphite and diamond; occurs in all organic compounds
4. noun

   any of several small trout-like fish of the genus Salvelinus
   synonyms: charr

   types:

   Arctic char, Salvelinus alpinus

   small trout of northern waters; landlocked populations in Quebec and northern New England

   type of:

   salmonid

   soft-finned fishes of cold and temperate waters
5. noun

   a human female employed to do housework
   “the char will clean the carpet”

   synonyms: charwoman, cleaning lady, cleaning woman, woman

   type of:

   cleaner

   someone whose job involves tidying and removing dirt or filth