fuse

Everyday

1. noun: A fuse is a small safety part in an electric plug or circuit with a thin wire that melts and breaks the circuit if too much current flows. tree →
2. noun: A fuse is a string or cord that you light to set off a firework or explosive. tree →
3. verb: To fuse means to join or melt together into one. tree →
4. verb (UK): If a light or machine fuses, it stops working because its fuse has melted. tree →
5. In old country speech, to fuse someone can mean to refuse them, to say no to them. tree →

In the lessons

In science lessons: fuses protect circuits and stop fires. In safety: never replace a fuse with wire or foil. In stories: a fuse burns down before a bang. Phrases: blow a fuse, a short fuse (gets angry quickly), fuse box, fuse together, light the fuse.

Examples

• The fuse blew and all the lights went out. tree →
• Dad checked the fuse box with a torch. tree →
• A fuse stops a wire getting too hot. tree →
• The pirate lit the fuse of the cannon. tree →
• The bones in a baby's skull fuse as it grows. tree →
• Heat fused the glass pieces together. tree →
• My brother has a short fuse and gets cross fast. tree →

Note

Countable noun. "Blow a fuse" can mean a fuse melts, or (informal) someone gets very angry. American spelling sometimes fuze for explosive fuses. In science: a 3-amp fuse melts if more than about 3 amps flow.

In Jewish tradition

In science lessons: fuses protect circuits and stop fires. In safety: never replace a fuse with wire or foil. In stories: a fuse burns down before a bang. Phrases: blow a fuse, a short fuse (gets angry quickly), fuse box, fuse together, light the fuse.

Examples

• The linear characters in Egypt are earlier than the hieroglyphics, though a few of the forms may ultimately have been fused with the latter. (Mordell, The Origin of Letters and Numerals according to Sefer Yetzirah (1914)) tree →

Note

Countable noun. "Blow a fuse" can mean a fuse melts, or (informal) someone gets very angry. American spelling sometimes fuze for explosive fuses. In science: a 3-amp fuse melts if more than about 3 amps flow.