incense

See also: incensé

English

Etymology

From Middle English encens, from Old French encens (“sweet-smelling substance”) from Late Latin incensum (“burnt incense”, literally “something burnt”), neuter past participle of incendō (“I set on fire”). Compare incendiary. Cognate with Spanish encender and incienso.

Pronunciation

• Noun:
  • enPR: ĭn'sĕns, IPA^(key): /ˈɪnsɛns/

  • Audio (US)

    (file)

• Verb:
  • enPR: ĭnsĕns', IPA^(key): /ɪnˈsɛns/

  • Audio (US)

    (file)

Noun

incense (countable and uncountable, plural incenses)

1. A perfume used in the rites of various religions.
2. (figuratively) Homage; adulation.

Derived terms

• incense boat
• incense cedar

Translations

A perfume often used in the rites of various religions

• Arabic: بَخْوُر‎‎ (ar) m (baḵwur)

  Egyptian Arabic: بخور‎‎ m (buḵwur)

• Armenian: խունկ (hy) (xunk)
• Asturian: inciensu m
• Azerbaijani: büxur
• Bulgarian: тамя́н (bg) m (tamján)
• Catalan: encens m
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 香 (zh) (xiāng)

• Czech: kadidlo (cs) n
• Danish: røgelse c, virak (da) c (dated)
• Dutch: wierook (nl) m
• Esperanto: incenso (eo)
• Estonian: viiruk
• Finnish: suitsuke (fi)
• French: encens (fr) m
• Galician: incenso (gl) m
• Georgian: საკმეველი (saḳmeveli)
• German: Weihrauch (de) m
• Greek: λιβάνι (el) n (liváni)

  Ancient: θυμίαμα n (thumíama)

• Hawaiian: heona
• Hebrew: קטורת‎‎ (he)
• Icelandic: reykelsi (is) n
• Ido: incenso (io)
• Italian: incenso (it) m, olibano m

• Japanese: 薫香 (くんこう, kunkō)
• Korean: 향 (ko) (hyang)
• Latin: tūs, suffīmen n, thȳmiāma
• Maori: whakakakara
• Mongolian: сан (mn) (san), ᠰᠠᠩ (sang)
• Norman: enchens m
• Norwegian: virak m, røkelse m

  Nynorsk: virak m, røykjelse m, røykelse m

• Polish: kadzidło (pl) n
• Portuguese: incenso (pt) m
• Romanian: tămâie (ro) f
• Russian: ла́дан (ru) m (ládan), фимиа́м (ru) m (fimiám), кади́ло (ru) n (kadílo) (incense burner)
• Sanskrit: धूपं (dhūpaṁ)
• Sardinian: timagna f, timanza f, timonza f
• Serbo-Croatian: тамјан m, tamjan (sh) m
• Slovene: kadilo (sl) n
• Spanish: incienso (es) m, sahumerio (es) m, sahumo m
• Swahili: ubani (sw)
• Swedish: rökelse (sv) c (virak (sv) c)
• Tagalog: dupa
• Thai: กำยาน (gam-yaan), ธูป (th) (tûup)
• Turkish: tütsü (tr)
• Vietnamese: hương (vi) (香), nhang (vi)
• Welsh: thus m
• Wolof: cuuraay

Verb

incense (third-person singular simple present incenses, present participle incensing, simple past and past participle incensed)

1. (transitive) To anger or infuriate.

   I think it would incense him to learn the truth.

2. (archaic) To incite, stimulate.
3. (transitive) To offer incense to.

   (Can we find and add a quotation of Chaucer to this entry?)

4. (transitive) To perfume with, or as with, incense.
   • Marston

     Incensed with wanton sweetes.

   • 1837 Thomas Carlyle, The French Revolution: A History

     Neither, for the future, shall any man or woman, self-styled noble, be incensed, — foolishly fumigated with incense, in Church; as the wont has been.

5. (obsolete) To set on fire; to inflame; to kindle; to burn.
   • Chapman

     Twelve Trojan princes wait on thee, and labour to incense / Thy glorious heap of funeral.

Translations

anger, infuriate

• Bulgarian: вбеся́вам (bg) (vbesjávam), разяря́вам (bg) (razjarjávam)
• Dutch: vertoornen
• Finnish: raivostuttaa (fi)

• Greek: θυμιατίζω (el) (thymiatízo)
• Russian: серди́ть (ru) impf (serdítʹ), рассерди́ть (ru) pf (rasserdítʹ), беси́ть (ru) impf (besítʹ), взбеси́ть (ru) pf (vzbesítʹ), разъяря́ть (ru) impf (razʺjarjátʹ), разъяри́ть (ru) pf (razʺjarítʹ), разгне́вать (ru) pf (razgnévatʹ), разозли́ть (ru) pf (razozlítʹ)

Anagrams

• Nicenes

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Latin

Participle

incense

1. vocative masculine singular of incensus

References

• incense in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879) A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
• incense in Charles du Fresne du Cange’s Glossarium Mediæ et Infimæ Latinitatis (augmented edition, 1883–1887)
• incense in Gaffiot, Félix (1934) Dictionnaire Illustré Latin-Français, Hachette
• incense in The Perseus Project (1999) Perseus Encyclopedia‎^[1]
• incense in Harry Thurston Peck, editor (1898) Harper's Dictionary of Classical Antiquities, New York: Harper & Brothers

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Spanish

Verb

incense

1. First-person singular (yo) present subjunctive form of incensar.
2. Formal second-person singular (usted) present subjunctive form of incensar.
3. Third-person singular (él, ella, also used with usted^?) present subjunctive form of incensar.
4. Formal second-person singular (usted) imperative form of incensar.