I. smoke 1 S3 W3 /sməʊk $ smoʊk/ BrE AmE noun
[ Word Family: noun : ↑ smoke , ↑ smoker ≠ ↑ non-smoker , ↑ smoking , ↑ smokiness ; adjective : ↑ smoked , smoking ≠ ↑ non-smoking , ↑ smoky , ↑ smokeless ; verb : ↑ smoke ]
[ Language: Old English ; Origin: smoca ]
1 . [uncountable] white, grey, or black gas that is produced by something burning:
clouds of black smoke
cigarette smoke
Smoke from burning fields drifted across nearby roads.
the pall of smoke (=thick cloud of smoke) that hung over the city
wisp/puff of smoke (=a small amount of smoke)
Rangers watched from their fire towers for any wisps of smoke.
2 . [countable usually singular] an act of smoking a cigarette etc:
He went outside for a quiet smoke.
3 . go up in smoke
a) if something goes up in smoke, it burns so that it is completely destroyed:
The whole factory went up in smoke.
b) informal if a plan or some work goes up in smoke, it fails or you cannot continue with it:
We haven’t worked this long just to see everything go up in smoke.
4 . [countable] spoken a cigarette or drugs that are smoked:
Where are the smokes, Jeff?
5 . there’s no smoke without fire ( also where there’s smoke there’s fire ) spoken used to say that if something bad is being said about someone, it is probably partly true
6 . when the smoke clears when things have stopped happening and the results can be clearly seen:
When the smoke clears, I think you'll find the company is in a stronger position.
7 . the Smoke British English old-fashioned informal London or any large town or city
• • •
COLLOCATIONS
■ ADJECTIVES/NOUN + smoke
▪ black/blue/white/grey smoke
Black smoke poured out of the engine.
▪ thick/dense smoke
Thick smoke spread through the building.
▪ acrid smoke (=smelling bad and making you cough)
The shop was full of thick, acrid smoke.
▪ cigarette/cigar/tobacco smoke
The air was thick with cigarette smoke.
▪ wood smoke
I love the scent of wood smoke.
■ phrases
▪ a cloud of smoke (=a large amount)
He lit a cigarette and blew out a cloud of smoke.
▪ a billow of smoke (=a large amount of smoke from a fire)
The green, fresh leaves will burn slowly, with billows of smoke.
▪ a pall of smoke (=a thick cloud of smoke hanging over something)
A thick pall of smoke hung over Cape Town.
▪ a column/plume of smoke
He could see a thin black column of smoke rising vertically into the sky.
▪ a puff of smoke (=a small amount that comes quickly from something)
There was a puff of white smoke from the man's gun.
▪ a wisp of smoke (=a thin amount of smoke)
Only a few wisps of smoke rose here and there.
■ verbs
▪ smoke rises
Smoke was rising from the top of the tower.
▪ smoke billows (=large amounts come from a fire)
She noticed smoke billowing out of one of the bedrooms.
▪ smoke drifts
The cigarette smoke drifted away on the breeze.
▪ smoke curls
Smoke curled from cooking fires next to a group of tents.
▪ smoke clears (=disappears)
The kitchen door was still open, and inside the smoke was clearing.
▪ belch (out) smoke (=send out large amounts of smoke)
The factories belch smoke.
II. smoke 2 S2 W2 BrE AmE verb
[ Word Family: noun : ↑ smoke , ↑ smoker ≠ ↑ non-smoker , ↑ smoking , ↑ smokiness ; adjective : ↑ smoked , smoking ≠ ↑ non-smoking , ↑ smoky , ↑ smokeless ; verb : ↑ smoke ]
1 . [intransitive and transitive] to suck or breathe in smoke from a cigarette, pipe etc or to do this regularly as a habit:
I don’t smoke and I don’t drink much.
Do you mind if I smoke?
He sat on the grass smoking a cigarette.
He admitted that he had smoked marijuana when he was a student.
2 . [intransitive] if something smokes, it has smoke coming from it:
a smoking chimney
3 . [transitive] to give fish or meat a special taste by hanging it in smoke
smoke somebody/something ↔ out phrasal verb
1 . to fill a place with smoke in order to force someone or something to come out:
He smoked the bees out of their nest.
2 . to discover who is causing a particular problem and force them to make themselves known:
an operation to smoke out double agents