combust
UK[kəmˈbʌst]US[kəmˈbʌst]
v
to catch fire and be destroyed or damaged
v
(technical) to undergo rapid chemical combination with oxygen, producing heat and light; to burn
Morpheme Breakdown
com
bust
com
together
bust
burn
Etymology
the word 'combust' originates from the latin verb combūrere, meaning 'to burn up, consume by fire'. this verb is itself a compound of the intensive prefix com- (meaning 'thoroughly') and ūrere (to burn). the past participle form, combustus, was adopted into middle english in the 15th century, primarily in technical and astrological contexts. the modern english verb retains the core sense of thorough burning, now used both in general language to mean 'catch fire' and as a precise scientific term for the process of combustion.
Analysis
Structure: com (together) + bust (burn)
- com: a latin prefix meaning 'together, with, thoroughly'.
- bust: from the latin root bust-, the past participle stem of ūrere (to burn), which appears in english as combustus (burned up).
Examples
the dry timber began to combust almost instantly when the spark landed on it.
in an internal combustion engine, fuel is mixed with air and combusted to produce power.
certain chemicals can spontaneously combust if stored improperly.