quench means the act of quenching something; the fact of being quenched.
quench is pronounced /kwɛnt͡ʃ/.
Why “quench” is a great word
To satisfy a thirst or desire thoroughly, or to extinguish something such as fire, light, or heat. From Middle English quenchen, from Old English cwenċan ("to quench, extinguish, destroy"), from Proto-Germanic *kwankijaną. Unlike "slake," which suggests a partial easing of thirst, or "quell," which implies forceful suppression, "quench" demands totality—the hiss of the blacksmith's iron in the trough, the last deep draught that leaves the glass empty, the sudden dark when the lantern is snuffed. It does not soothe; it ends, leaving only the quiet surrender of desire to its absolute terminus.
Etymology
From Middle English quenchen, from Old English cwenċan, from Proto-Germanic *kwankijaną.
noun
- The act of quenching something; the fact of being quenched.e.g.“Then the MacManus [i.e. a ship] went down. The sudden quench of the white light was how I knew it.”
- The abnormal termination of operation of a superconducting magnet, occurring when part of the superconducting coil enters the normal (resistive) state.
- A rapid change of the parameters of a physical system.
verb
- To satisfy, especially a literal or figurative thirst.e.g.“The library quenched her thirst for knowledge.”
- To extinguish or put out (as a fire or light).
- To cool rapidly by direct contact with liquid coolant, as a blacksmith quenching hot iron.e.g.“The swordsmith quenched the sword in an oil bath so that it wouldn't shatter.”
- To terminate or greatly diminish (a chemical reaction) by destroying or deforming the remaining reagents.
- To rapidly change the parameters of a physical system.e.g.“A suitable method to prepare a system out of equilibrium in order to study the ensuing dynamics is to quench the system, i.e., to change its parameters abruptly.”
- To rapidly terminate the operation of a superconducting electromagnet by causing part or all of the magnet's windings to enter the normal, resistive state.e.g.“If someone is pinned against the MRI magnet by a ferromagnetic object, you may need to quench the magnet in order to free them.”
Words closest in meaning
By meaning, not spelling — each word's AI semantic fingerprint, nearest first.
- slake 89% match — To satisfy (thirst, or other desires). vs quench →
- sleck 88% match — To slake; allay; cool; quench; extinguish. vs quench →
- quell 87% match — To subdue, put down, or silence (someone or something); to force (someone) to submit. vs quench →
- assuage 84% match — To lessen the intensity of, to mitigate or relieve (hunger, emotion, pain, etc.). vs quench →
- queme 84% match — To please, to satisfy. vs quench →
- soothe 84% match — To restore to ease, comfort, or tranquility; relieve; calm; quiet; refresh. vs quench →
- quaff 83% match — To drink or imbibe with vigour or relish; to drink copiously; to swallow in large draughts. vs quench →
- aslake 83% match — To abate; diminish. vs quench →