Note: 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.]
Note: 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.
SMOKE
Smoke, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Smoked; p. pr. & vb n. Smoking.] Etym:
[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.