Synonyms of burns

burns 1 of 2

verb

present tense third-person singular of burn

1

as in glows

to be on fire especially brightly

all evening long we just sat there, contentedly watching the Yule log burn

Synonyms & Similar Words

• glows
• flames
• blazes
• fires
• combusts
• flickers
• gleams
• shines
• smolders
• ignites
• goes up in flames
• melts
• scorches
• kindles
• cooks
• bakes
• sparks
• wavers
• roasts
• sputters
• lights (up)
• enkindles
• brightens
• flashes
• flares (up)
• catches
• radiates
• beams
• sparkles
• chars
• deflagrates
• glistens
• beats (down)
• glints
• glares
• shimmers
• broils
• swelters
• glitters
• glimmers
• twinkles
• gutters
• scintillates

2

as in scorches

to set (something) on fire

it is not a good idea to try to burn old papers in the sink

Synonyms & Similar Words

• scorches
• ignites
• fires
• lights
• torches
• kindles
• inflames
• enkindles
• illumines
• bakes
• illuminates
• immolates
• cooks
• incinerates
• ashes
• broils
• sets off
• brightens
• lightens
• chars
• scalds
• stokes
• relights
• deflagrates
• radiates
• rekindles
• irradiates
• sears
• kilns
• cremates
• reignites
• frizzles
• banks
• scathes

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• extinguishes
• quenches
• puts out
• chokes
• smothers
• suffocates
• stamps (out)
• douses
• snuffs (out)
• obscures
• darkens
• dims
• blackens
• dulls

3

as in steams

to be excited or emotionally stirred up with anger

he came home burning with anger because of a reprimand at work

Synonyms & Similar Words

• steams
• rages
• boils
• fumes
• storms
• shakes
• foams
• seethes
• rankles
• sizzles
• smolders
• sees red
• agitates
• inflames
• rants
• raves
• fulminates
• bristles
• flares (up)
• chafes
• convulses
• frets
• roils
• stews

4

as in flames

to shine with a bright harsh light

the bright streetlight outside our motel room burned all night long

Synonyms & Similar Words

• glows
• flames
• glares
• blazes
• gleams
• flares
• flashes
• beats
• glances
• radiates
• sparkles
• beams
• glistens
• glints
• shimmers
• glitters
• twinkles
• glimmers
• dazzles
• blinds
• scintillates
• glisters
• dazes
• bedazzles

5

as in deceives

to cause to believe what is untrue

he's been burned before, so he's careful to double-check such claims now

Synonyms & Similar Words

• deceives
• tricks
• fools
• stings
• kids
• teases
• misleads
• juggles
• deludes
• snows
• misguides
• catches
• misinforms
• sucks in
• beguiles
• suckers
• strings along
• hoodwinks
• has on
• has
• bamboozles
• spoofs
• cheats
• dupes
• takes in
• bluffs
• hoaxes
• humbugs
• cozens
• does a number on
• gaffs
• gulls
• fakes out
• cons
• buffaloes
• hornswoggles
• gammons
• sticks
• bleeds
• snookers
• pulls one's leg
• pulls the wool over one's eyes
• leads one down the garden path
• puts on
• defrauds
• shortchanges
• squeezes
• hustles
• diddles
• swindles
• flimflams
• chisels
• mulcts
• skins
• fleeces
• rooks
• euchres

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• reveals
• exposes
• uncovers
• shows up
• unmasks
• tells
• discloses
• debunks
• undeceives
• divulges
• unveils
• uncloaks
• disillusions
• disenchants
• disabuses

6

as in consumes

to make complete use of

heedlessly burning the country's resources without any concern for future generations

Synonyms & Similar Words

• consumes
• spends
• drains
• exhausts
• absorbs
• reduces
• eats
• uses
• depletes
• devours
• expends
• runs out of
• decreases
• plays out
• draws down
• empties
• wastes
• uses up
• diminishes
• lowers
• downsizes
• weakens
• blows
• dwindles
• lessens
• undermines
• cleans (out)
• bankrupts
• debilitates
• saps
• impoverishes
• cripples
• abates
• disables
• enfeebles
• dissipates
• de-escalates
• dries up
• guzzles
• runs through
• squanders
• lavishes
• throws away
• misspends
• fritters (away)

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• increases
• replaces
• renews
• augments
• repairs
• enlarges
• reinforces
• enforces
• strengthens
• restores
• saves
• preserves
• revives
• conserves
• bolsters
• rebuilds
• fortifies

burns

2 of 2

noun

plural of burn, British

as in brooks

a natural body of running water smaller than a river

the walkers forded the shallow burn and then came upon a field of gorse

Synonyms & Similar Words

• brooks
• creeks
• runs
• streams
• rills
• rivulets
• runnels
• streamlets
• tributaries
• becks
• brooklets
• canals
• washes
• bayous
• bourns
• gills
• freshets
• kills
• runlets
• sloughs
• runoffs
• arroyos
• cuts
• freshes
• races
• coulees
• waterways
• cutoffs
• watercourses
• channels
• guts
• billabongs
• branches
• distributaries
• affluents
• influents
• millstreams
• millraces
• confluents

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of burns

Verb

Freedom without a revenue tether burns cash faster than any downturn will. — Expert Panel®, Forbes.com, 30 Oct. 2026

Burn rate Rice paper tends to burn slowest, while hemp burns at a moderate rate, and wood pulp burns very quickly. — Bestreviews, Chicago Tribune, 30 Oct. 2026

Each candle burns for about 10 hours, so it’s bound to give your home office or next movie marathon a multi-sensory edge. — Kelsey Mulvey, Southern Living, 27 Oct. 2026

The report authors also looked at how climate change could play out differently if the world burns more or fewer fossil fuels and puts in place stronger or weaker policies. — Blanca Begert, Los Angeles Times, 20 Oct. 2026

Decades later, the fire lit by his first steed, a brown Schwinn Mag Scrambler, still burns bright. — Stewart Clarke, Deadline, 19 Oct. 2026

The friction causes an electrical shock that burns Clancy, and Lisa steals his keys. — Tasha Robinson, Vulture, 14 Oct. 2026

The Aspen Acres Fire burns behind homes on July 3, 2026, in Rye, Colorado. — Christa Swanson, CBS News, 13 Oct. 2026

Played by Jesse Eisenberg, Zuckerberg is dramatized as a conceited, socially awkward college student who repeatedly burns allies in pursuit of power. — Brady Brickner-Wood, New Yorker, 12 Oct. 2026

Noun

Exposure to high levels of ammonia in the air may cause irritation to the skin, eyes, throat, and lungs and cause coughing and burns, according to the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry. — Eduardo Cuevas, CNN Money, 25 Oct. 2026

Investigators found Amy in a separate area with a ligature around her neck and burns covering up to 30% of her body, according to court documents. — Leigh Egan, FOXNews.com, 24 Oct. 2026

Advertisement Given all the change that artificial intelligence is predicted to bring, quibbling over word choice might seem pedantic, like arguing about the Latin name of a tree’s species while the forest burns. — David Litt, Time, 23 Oct. 2026

On Thanksgiving 1996, 80 percent of Knight’s body sustained second, third and fourth-degree burns. — Sean Krofssik, Hartford Courant, 22 Oct. 2026

The two other injured people were transported to Detroit Receiving Hospital to be treated for smoke inhalation and minor burns. — Karma Sabbah, CBS News, 22 Oct. 2026

After first-stage separation, the upper stage will perform the burns needed to send MMX toward Mars. — Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 19 Oct. 2026

Conservative opposition leader Pierre Poilievre, who represents Wainwright in Parliament and was visiting the town, said many suffered severe burns requiring weeks or months of intensive care. — Rob Gillies, Los Angeles Times, 19 Oct. 2026

This study also found a higher incidence of fibroids in women who used relaxers more frequently and reported more scalp burns. — Ata-Owaji Victor, Vogue, 13 Oct. 2026