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spontaneous combustion

   Also found in: Acronyms, Encyclopedia, Wikipedia, Hutchinson 0.01 sec.
spontaneous combustion
n.
Ignition of a substance, such as oily rags or hay, caused by a localized heat-increasing reaction between the oxidant and the fuel and not involving addition of heat from an outside source.
spontaneous combustion
Noun
Chem the bursting into flame of a substance as a result of internal oxidation processes, without heat from an outside source
spontaneous combustion
The bursting into flame of a mass of material as a result of chemical reactions within the substance, without the addition of heat from an external source. Oily rags and damp hay, for example, are subject to spontaneous combustion.
ThesaurusLegend:  Synonyms Related Words Antonyms
Noun1.spontaneous combustion - ignition of a substance (as oily rags) resulting from an internal oxidation process
ignition - the process of initiating combustion or catching fire


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? Mentioned in ? References in classic literature
 
The possibility of what is called spontaneous combustion has been denied since the death of Mr.
Bleak House by Dickens, Charles View in context
All this time, he lay upon his bed, the very core and centre of a blaze of ruddy light, which streamed upon it when the clock proclaimed the hour; and which, being only light, was more alarming than a dozen ghosts, as he was powerless to make out what it meant, or would be at; and was sometimes apprehensive that he might be at that very moment an interesting case of spontaneous combustion, without having the consolation of knowing it.
A Christmas Carol by Dickens, Charles View in context
All in that region was fire and commotion; the soup and fish were in the last stage of projection, and the cook hung over her crucibles in a frame of mind and body threatening spontaneous combustion.
Jane Eyre by Bronte, Charlotte View in context
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