■ verb
1》 burn or scorch with a sudden intense heat.
↘brown (food) quickly at a high temperature.
2》 [usu. as adjective ~ing ] (of pain) be experienced as a sudden burning sensation.
3》 archaic cause to wither or become insensitive.
■ adjective (also sere ) literary withered.
Derivatives
~ingly adverb
Origin
OE sēar (adjective), sēarian (v.), of Gmc origin.