Main Entry: quench

Pronunciation: \ˈkwench\

Function: verb

Etymology: Middle English, from Old English -cwencan; akin to Old English -cwincan to vanish, Old Frisian quinka

Date: 12th century

transitive verb 1 a : put out, extinguish b : to put out the light or fire of <quench glowing coals with water> c : to cool (as heated metal) suddenly by immersion (as in oil or water) d : to cause to lose heat or warmth <you have quenched the warmth of France toward you — Alfred Tennyson>
2 a : to bring (something immaterial) to an end typically by satisfying, damping, cooling, or decreasing <a rational understanding of the laws of nature can quench impossible desires — Lucius Garvin> <the praise that quenches all desire to read the book — T. S. Eliot> b : to terminate by or as if by destroying : eliminate <the Commonwealth party quenched a whole generation of play-acting — Margery Bailey> <quench a rebellion> c : to relieve or satisfy with liquid <quenched his thirst at a wayside spring>intransitive verb 1 : to become extinguished : cool
2 : to become calm : subside

— quench·able \ˈkwen-chə-bəl\ adjective

— quench·er noun

— quench·less \ˈkwench-ləs\ adjective