combustion

noun

com·​bus·​tion kəm-ˈbəs-chən 

1

: an act or instance of burning

Smoke is produced during combustion.

2

: a usually rapid chemical process (such as oxidation) that produces heat and usually light

The carburetor mixes fuel with air for combustion.

also : a slower oxidation (as in the body)

3

: violent agitation : tumult

… periods of great social combustion alternating with quiescence …

—Kurt Andersen

combustive

kəm-ˈbə-stiv 

adjective

Examples of combustion in a Sentence

Combustion may occur at high temperatures.

This ratio of air to fuel results in better combustion.

Recent Examples on the Web

As of 2017, wildfire smoke had overtaken fuel combustion from electricity generation and industry as the leading source of dangerous small particles that make people sick. —Ignacio Calderon, USA Today, 24 Apr. 2025

Kevin Bacon would very much like to be a victim of spontaneous human combustion — at least in the world of This Is Spinal Tap and the classic comedy film's upcoming sequel Spinal Tap II: The End Continues. —Joey Nolfi, EW.com, 4 Apr. 2025

Thanks to thoughtful plug-and-play engineering, that tasty combustion power is bolstered with an AMG electric motor that spools up 354 lb. ft. of instant on-demand electric torque, more than double the electric torque offered in the mainstream E 450 version of this powertrain. —Mark Ewing, Forbes, 22 Mar. 2025

In 2021, New York City adopted Local Law 154, which sets an air emissions limit for indoor combustion of fuels within new buildings. —Akielly Hu, Wired News, 29 Mar. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English combustioun "burning, calcination," borrowed from Anglo-French & Late Latin; Anglo-French combustion, borrowed from Late Latin combustiōn-, combustiō "burning up (of the dead or by the fires in hell)," from Latin combus-, variant stem of combūrere "to destroy with fire, reduce to ashes" + -tiōn-, tiō, suffix of verbal action — more at combust

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing combustion

• combustion chamber
• combustion engine
• external combustion engine
• internal combustion engine
• pre-combustion
• spontaneous combustion

Rhymes for combustion

• fustian

Kids Definition

combustion

noun

com·​bus·​tion kəm-ˈbəs-chən 

1

: an act or instance of burning

2

: a chemical process in which substances combine with oxygen

Medical Definition

combustion

noun

com·​bus·​tion kəm-ˈbəs-chən 

: a usually very rapid chemical process (as oxidation) that produces heat and usually light

also : a slower oxidation (as in the body)