Meaning of “smoke” in the English Dictionary

English
Contents

"smoke" in English

See all translations

smokenoun

uk ​ /sməʊk/ us ​ /smoʊk/

smoke noun (GREY GAS)

B1 [ U ] the grey, black, or white mixture of gas and very small pieces of carbon that is produced when something burns:

cigarette smoke
a tiny smoke-filled room
The fire produced a pall (= large mass) of smoke visible 20 miles away.
Plumes of smoke billowed from the chimney.
She leaned back thoughtfully and blew a puff of (= a small amount of) smoke into the air.
go up in smoke

› to be destroyed by burning:

Because of the fire, hundreds of houses went up in smoke.

› Something that goes up in smoke fails to produce the result that was wanted:

When the business went bankrupt, 20 years of hard work went up in smoke.

More examples

Thesaurus: synonyms and related words

smoke noun (CITY)

the (big) smoke UK and Australian English informal

› any large city, especially London, Sydney, or Melbourne:

He was a young lad of 16 when he first came to the big smoke.

Thesaurus: synonyms and related words

Idiom(s)

there's no smoke without fire

smokeverb

uk ​ /sməʊk/ us ​ /smoʊk/

smoke verb (BREATHE SMOKE)

A1 [ I or T ] to breathe smoke into the mouth and usually lungs from a cigarette, pipe, etc.:

Do you mind if I smoke?
I used to smoke a packet of cigarettes a day.

More examples

Thesaurus: synonyms and related words

smoke verb (PRESERVE)

› [ T ] to preserve meat, fish, or cheese using smoke from burning wood:

People in Egypt were salting, drying, and smoking fish and meat 6,000 years ago.

Thesaurus: synonyms and related words

Phrasal verb(s)

smoke sb/sth out

(Definition of “smoke” from the Cambridge Advanced Learner’s Dictionary & Thesaurus © Cambridge University Press)

"smoke" in American English

See all translations

smokenoun

us ​ /smoʊk/

smoke noun (CLOUDY AIR)

› [ U ] a cloudy gray or black mixture of air and very small pieces of carbon produced by something that is burning:

The building filled with smoke.
Nobody died in the fire, but three people were treated for smoke inhalation.

smoke noun (ACT OF SMOKING)

› [ C ] an act of smoking

smokeverb

us ​ /smoʊk/

smoke verb (BREATHE SMOKE)

› [ I/T ] to breathe smoke into the mouth or lungs from burning tobacco

smoke verb (PRESERVE)

› [ T ] to preserve and add a smoky flavor to meat, fish, or cheese using smoke from burning wood:

They smoke the fish over wood chips.

smoke verb (PRODUCE SMOKE)

› [ I ] to produce or give off smoke:

The oil in the frying pan started smoking.

Phrasal verb(s)

smoke someone out

(Definition of “smoke” from the Cambridge Academic Content Dictionary © Cambridge University Press)

Translations of “smoke”
 
Need a translator?

Translator tool

Get a quick, free translation!

What is the pronunciation of smoke?
Browse