[quench] vb [ME, fr. OE -cwencan; akin to OE -cwincan to vanish, OFris quinka] vt (12c) 1 a: put out, extinguish b: to put out the light or fire of "~ glowing coals with water" c: to cool (as heated metal) suddenly by immersion (as in oil or water) d: to cause to lose heat or warmth "you have ~ed the warmth of France toward you --Alfred Tennyson"
2. a: to bring (something immaterial) to an end typically by satisfying, damping, cooling, or decreasing "a rational understanding of the laws of nature can ~ impossible desires --Lucius Garvin" "the praise that ~es all desire to read the book --T. S. Eliot" b: to terminate by or as if by destroying: eliminate "the Commonwealth party ~ed a whole generation of play-acting --Margery Bailey" "~ a rebellion" c: to relieve or satisfy with liquid "~ed his thirst at a wayside spring" ~ vi 1: to become extinguished: cool
2: to become calm: subside -- quench.able adj -- quench.er n -- quench.less adj