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smudge (DCHP-1)†
DCHP-1 (pre-1967)
Entry from the DCHP-1 (pre-1967)
This entry may contain outdated or offensive information, terms, and examples.
1n.
a fire which gives off dense, acrid smoke from having damp moss, green grass or leaves, etc. heaped on its flames.
Quotations
1801
The women closed the openings of the cabins, and made a smudge inside.
1880
The little enclosure, some ten feet square [is] fenced in to contain the extensive "smudge" of grass and leafy boughs, around which the horses gather on summer evenings to secure in the smoke a respite from the mosquitoes.
1959
The man replied that he was making smudges to keep away mosquitoes
2n.
a can, pail, etc., often with a perforated bottom, used to build a smudge (def. 1).
See: smudge pot
Quotations
1829
. . . they keep a smudge always at the threshold of the door of the dwelling.
1921
"Telesphore . . . make us a smudge. Take the old tin pail."
1961
Flies and mosquitoes were in millions. Everywhere, when driving to town, one had to have a "smudge" in the wagon to ward them off.
3n.
See 1941 quote.
Quotations
1939
If there had been a moon, a person coming over the hills would have seen that smudge as a perfectly level sheet closing the bowl like a lid.
1941
Smudge--An acrid smoke from green grass or turf for keeping mosquitoes away from a certain area.