Crossword Dictionary

What's The Definition Of Fuse?

\Fuse\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Fused} (fuzd); p. pr. & vb. n. {Fusing}.] [L. fusus, p. p. of fundere to pour, melt, cast. See {Foundo} to cast, and cf. Futile.] 1. To liquefy by heat; to render fiuid; to dissolve; to melt. 2. To unite or blend, as if melted together. Whose fancy fuses old and new. --Tennyson.
\Fuse\, v. i. 1. To be reduced from a solid to a Quid state by heat; to be melted; to melt. 2. To be blended, as if melted together. {Fusing point}, the degree of temperature at which a substance melts; the point of fusion.
\Fuse\, n. [For fusee, fusil. See 2d {Fusil}.] (Gunnery, Mining, etc.) A tube or casing filled with combustible matter, by means of which a charge of powder is ignited, as in blasting; -- called also {fuzee}. See {Fuze}. {Fuse hole}, the hole in a shell prepared for the reception of the fuse. --Farrow.
\Fuse\, or Fuze \Fuze\, n. (Elec.) A wire, bar, or strip of fusible metal inserted for safety in an electric circuit. When the current increases beyond a certain safe strength, the metal melts, interrupting the circuit and thereby preventing possibility of damage.
\Fuse\, or Fuze plug \Fuze, plug\ . 1. (Ordnance) A plug fitted to the fuse hole of a shell to hold the fuse. 2. A fusible plug that screws into a receptacle, used as a fuse in electric wiring.