incinerate

verb

in·​cin·​er·​ate in-ˈsi-nə-ˌrāt 

incinerated; incinerating

transitive verb

: to cause to burn to ashes

incineration

in-ˌsi-nə-ˈrā-shən 

noun

Examples of incinerate in a Sentence

The waste is incinerated in a large furnace.

Recent Examples on the Web

The truck eventually explodes, seemingly incinerating the T-1000. — ArsTechnica, 28 Aug. 2026

There’s Spokane, the growing eastern Washington city of 230,000 where fires this summer incinerated more than 800 structures. — Los Angeles Times, 26 Aug. 2026

Even after treatment, some could not be recycled and had to be sent to landfill or incinerated. — Georgina Jedikovska, Interesting Engineering, 20 Aug. 2026

Hundreds have felt helpless in the Via De La Paz, Pacific Palisades condominium complex, as the wildfire incinerated half of it. — Kara Finnstrom, CBS News, 17 Aug. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Medieval Latin incineratus, past participle of incinerare, from Latin in- + ciner-, cinis ashes; akin to Greek konis dust, ashes

First Known Use

1555, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for incinerate

• abbreviate
• accelerate
• accommodate
• accumulate
• acuminate
• adjudicate
• adulterate
• affiliate
• agglomerate
• agglutinate
• alleviate
• amalgamate

Kids Definition

incinerate

verb

in·​cin·​er·​ate in-ˈsin-ə-ˌrāt 

incinerated; incinerating

: to burn to ashes

incineration

-ˌsin-ə-ˈrā-shən 

noun

Medical Definition

incinerate

transitive verb

in·​cin·​er·​ate in-ˈsin-ə-ˌrāt 

incinerated; incinerating

: to cause to burn to ashes