quench-fire

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• dirty water will quench fire — Mainly used to mean that a man’s lust can be satisfied by any woman, however loose or ugly. 1546 J. HEYWOOD Dialogue of Proverbs I. V. B2 As this prouerbe saieth, for quench yng hot desire, Foul water as soone as fayre, wyl quenche hot fire. 1796 …   Proverbs new dictionary

• quench — [kwench] vt. [ME quenchen < OE cwencan, to extinguish, caus. of cwincan, to go out, akin to Fris kwinka, MHG verquinen, to pass away < IE base * gwey , to complain, weep] 1. to extinguish; put out [to quench fire with water] 2. to overcome; …   English World dictionary

• fire — see fire is a good servant but a bad master the same fire that melts the butter hardens the egg a burnt child dreads the fire dirty water will quench fire fight fire with fire you should know a man seven years before you stir hi …   Proverbs new dictionary

• quench — see dirty water will quench fire …   Proverbs new dictionary

• Quench the Spark — (also translated as A Spark Neglected Burns the House ) is a short story by Russian author Leo Tolstoy first published in 1885. The story takes the form of a parable concerning the virtues of reconciliation. ynopsisThe story opens with the family …   Wikipedia

• Quench — Quench, v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Quenched}; p. pr. & vb. n. {Quenching}.] [OE. quenchen, AS. cwencan in [=a]cwencan, to extinguish utterly, causative of cwincan, [=a]cwincan, to decrease, disappear; cf. AS. cw[=i]nan, [=a]cw[=i]nan, to waste or… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

• quench — [kwentʃ] v [T] formal [: Old English; Origin: cwencan] 1.) quench your thirst to stop yourself feeling thirsty, by drinking something ▪ We stopped at a small bar to quench our thirst. 2.) quench a fire/flames to stop a fire from burning ▪ a… …   Dictionary of contemporary English

• quench — [ kwentʃ ] verb transitive 1. ) if you quench your THIRST, you drink something so that you do not feel thirsty anymore a ) used about other types of feelings or needs: Books have traditionally quenched a child s thirst for knowledge. 2. ) OLD… …   Usage of the words and phrases in modern English

• quench — (v.) O.E. acwencan to quench (of fire, light), from P.Gmc. *cwandjan, probably a causative form of root of O.E. cwincan to go out, be extinguished, O.Fris. kwinka. Related: Quenched; quenching …   Etymology dictionary

• quench — ► VERB 1) satisfy (thirst) by drinking. 2) satisfy (a desire). 3) extinguish (a fire). 4) stifle (a feeling). 5) rapidly cool (hot metal). 6) Physics & Electronics suppress or damp (luminescence, an oscillation, etc.). DERIVA …   English terms dictionary