blazes


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blaze 1

 (blāz)
n.
1.
a. A brilliant burst of fire; a flame.
b. A destructive fire.
2. A bright or steady light or glare: the blaze of the desert sun.
3. A brilliant, striking display: flowers that were a blaze of color.
4. A sudden outburst, as of emotion: a blaze of anger.
5. blazes Used as an intensive: Where in blazes are my keys?
v. blazed, blaz·ing, blaz·es
v.intr.
1. To burn with a bright flame.
2. To shine brightly.
3. To be resplendent: a garden blazing with flowers.
4. To flare up suddenly: My neighbor's temper blazed.
5. To shoot rapidly and continuously: Machine guns blazed.
v.tr.
To shine or be resplendent with: eyes that blazed hatred.

[Middle English blase, from Old English blæse; see bhel- in Indo-European roots.]

blaz′ing·ly adv.

blaze 2

 (blāz)
n.
1. A white or light-colored spot or stripe on the face of an animal, such as a horse.
2. A mark to indicate a trail, usually painted on or cut into a tree.
tr.v. blazed, blaz·ing, blaz·es
1.
a. To mark (a tree) with a blaze.
b. To indicate (a trail) by making blazes.
2. To prepare or lead (the way in an endeavor): blazed the way in space exploration.

[Of Germanic origin; akin to blaze.]

blaze 3

 (blāz)
tr.v. blazed, blaz·ing, blaz·es
To make known publicly; proclaim: Headlines blazed the news.

[Middle English blasen, from Middle Dutch blāsen, to blow up, swell; see bhlē- in Indo-European roots.]
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

blazes

(ˈbleɪzɪz)
pl n
1. slang a euphemistic word for hell
2. informal (intensifier): to run like blazes; what the blazes are you doing?.
3. go to blazes! slang go to hell!
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014
References in classic literature ?
When the bell rang a second time the King shouted angrily, "Smudge and blazes!" and at a third ring he screamed in a fury, "Hippikaloric!" which must be a dreadful word because we don't know what it means.
'Oh, wery good,' said Sam; 'then I'll amend the obserwation and call 'em the dear creeturs, if Blazes vill allow me.'
But now, in the autumnal twilight, illuminated by the flickering blaze of the wood-fire, they looked at the old chair, and thought that it had never before worn such an interesting aspect.
Beneath the shelter of one hut, in the bright blaze of the same fire, sat this varied group of adventurers, all so intent upon a single object, that, of whatever else they began to speak, their closing words were sure to be illuminated with the Great Carbuncle.
'No,' said his bride, 'for how could we live by day, or sleep by night, in this awful blaze of the Great Carbuncle!'
Thus sped the demoniac on his course, until, quivering among the trees, he saw a red light before him, as when the felled trunks and branches of a clearing have been set on fire, and throw up their lurid blaze against the sky, at the hour of midnight.
The balloon, thus suddenly lightened, made a leap of three hundred feet into the air, amid the howlings of the tribe whose prisoner thus escaped them in a blaze of dazzling light.
I presume that you have looked into this matter of the murder of John Straker and the disappearance of Silver Blaze?"
Some searched the drawers, the chests, the boxes, writing-desks, and closets, for jewels, plate, and money; while others, less mindful of gain and more mad for destruction, cast their whole contents into the courtyard without examination, and called to those below, to heap them on the blaze. Men who had been into the cellars, and had staved the casks, rushed to and fro stark mad, setting fire to all they saw--often to the dresses of their own friends--and kindling the building in so many parts that some had no time for escape, and were seen, with drooping hands and blackened faces, hanging senseless on the window-sills to which they had crawled, until they were sucked and drawn into the burning gulf.
The west was a broadening blaze of yellow and purple and red.
Dry and worm-eaten, a spark upon them became a smoulder, and a smoulder a blaze. A choking smoke filled the air, and the five could scarce grope their way to the staircase which led up to the very summit of the square tower.
If a few chips are added, it throws out a cheerful and kindly blaze.