What does "incense" mean?
Incense: To inflame with anger; to endkindle; to fire; to incite; to provoke; to heat; to madden. The people are incensed him. Shak.
Additional senses
- 2.To offer incense to. See Incense. [Obs.] Chaucer.
- 3.To perfume with, or as with, incense. "Incensed with wanton sweets." Marston.
- 4.The perfume or odors exhaled from spices and gums when burned in celebrating religious rites or as an offering to some deity. A thick of incense went up. Ezek. viii.
- 5.2. The materials used for the purpose of producing a perfume when burned, as fragrant gums, spices, frankincense, etc. Nadab and Abihu, the sons of Aaron, took either of them his censer, and put fire therein, and put incense thereon. Lev. x.
- 6.3. Also used figuratively. Or heap the shrine of luxury and pride, With incense kindled at the Muse's flame. Gray. Incense tree, the name of several balsamic trees of the genus Bursera (or Icica) mostly tropical American. The gum resin is used for incense. In Jamaica the Chrysobalanus Icaco, a tree related to the plums, is called incense tree. -- Incense wood, the fragrant wood of the tropical American tree Bursera heptaphylla.
Sources
- Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913 edition (public domain, via GCIDE / Project Gutenberg).
- Canonical URL: https://worddirectanswers.com/answers/what-does-incense-mean
- Steward: Jason Burns
- Published: 2026-07-17T00:00:00-07:00 · Modified: 2026-07-17T00:00:00-07:00