searing

adjective

sear·​ing ˈsir-iŋ How to pronounce searing (audio)
1
: very hot
2
: marked by extreme intensity, harshness, or emotional power
searing pain
a searing review
a searing portrayal
searingly adverb

Examples of searing in a Sentence

the searing heat of the fire She felt a searing pain in her foot. She made a searing attack on her political enemies.
Recent Examples on the Web Squid Game might have set out to tell a searing allegory about the miseries of capitalism, but its packaging was a marketing boon. Angie Han, The Hollywood Reporter, 21 Nov. 2023 Is there something in this prequel that’s equally searing and powerful? WIRED, 17 Nov. 2023 Rodrigo wrote the searing ballad with producer Daniel Nigro, less than two months after the release of Guts, her sophomore LP. Lars Brandle, Billboard, 3 Nov. 2023 Recommended Justice Israel’s moral challenge in Gaza – to fight humanely 9 How To Say Babylon by Safiya Sinclair Acclaimed poet Safiya Sinclair’s searing and lyrical memoir describes her upbringing in Jamaica in a strict Rastafarian household ruled by her autocratic father. Monitor Contributors, The Christian Science Monitor, 24 Oct. 2023 The work is searing and personal, but not parochial. Imani Perry, New York Times, 13 Oct. 2023 The next day, Moshe Dayan, the Israeli military’s chief of staff, delivered a short but searing eulogy, standing over the officer’s grave. Ruth Margalit, The New Yorker, 13 Oct. 2023 Related:Dallas author LaToya Watkins mines Texas’ traumas in her searing debut novel, ‘Perish’ If a reader stumbles and pauses over this vernacular, Holler, Child may be a challenging read. Joyce Sáenz Harris, Dallas News, 30 Aug. 2023 On a searing August afternoon, Chappell Roan sidled up to her favorite bar in L.A., Bigfoot Lodge in Atwater Village. August Brown, Los Angeles Times, 29 Aug. 2023 See More

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'searing.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1678, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of searing was in 1678

Dictionary Entries Near searing

Cite this Entry

“Searing.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/searing. Accessed 6 Dec. 2023.

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