ash

The word “ash” means the gray powdery residue left after something has burned. In plain terms, the gray residue left after burning, or (unrelated meaning) a common shade tree with tough, pale wood.

“Ash” is pronounced ASH (/ˈæʃ/ in IPA).

Here is “ash” used in a sentence: “She tapped the ash from her cigarette into the tray.”

“Ash” is a noun.

The word “ash” comes from Old English. From Old English æsce, going back to a very old Germanic and Indo-European root connected to fire, burning, and dryness.

“Ash” is a fairly common word in modern English, usually learned at around the B2 level.

“Ash” has 3 distinct senses listed in this dictionary. The most common is: the gray powdery residue left after something has burned.

"Ash" is usually an uncountable mass noun for the powdery residue left by burning, as in "ash from the fire." "Ashes" is the plural, often used for the remains of something fully burned, such as "the ashes of the campfire" or cremated remains.

Ash is the gray powdery residue left behind after something burns, while soot is the fine black powder produced by incomplete burning that clings to surfaces. Ash tends to be pale and settles as residue, whereas soot is dark and airborne.

These are two unrelated meanings of the same word. One "ash" is a hardwood tree of the genus Fraxinus with pale, tough timber, while the other is the residue left after burning.

Ash is the fine, gray powder that remains after burning, while cinders are the small, partly burned lumps that are coarser and heavier. Cinders may still contain unburned material, whereas ash is what is left when burning is complete.