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fuse1

Syllabification: (fuse)
Pronunciation: /fyo͞oz/
Translate fuse | into French | into German | into Italian | into Spanish
Definition of fuse

noun

  • a safety device consisting of a strip of wire that melts and breaks an electric circuit if the current exceeds a safe level.

verb

  • 1 [with object] join or blend to form a single entity:intermarriage had fused the families into a large unit
  • [no object] (of groups of atoms or cellular structures) join or coalesce:the two nuclei move together and fuse into one nucleus
  • melt (a material or object) with intense heat, especially so as to join it with something else:powdered glass was fused to a metal base
  • 2 [with object] provide (a circuit or electrical appliance) with a fuse: (as adjective fused)a fused plug
  • 3 [no object] British (of an electrical appliance) stop working when a fuse melts:the crew were left in darkness after the lights fused
  • [with object] cause (an electrical appliance) to stop working when a fuse melts.

Phrases

blow a fuse

use too much power in an electrical circuit, causing a fuse to melt.
informal lose one’s temper:it was only a suggestion—there’s no need to blow a fuse

Origin:

late 16th century: from Latin fus- 'poured, melted', from the verb fundere

fuse in other Oxford dictionaries

Definition of fuse in the British & World English dictionary

Nearby words

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