Dowse
/daʊs/noun
To extinguish a flame or to drench something with water.
Did you know?The word is tied to the idea of something being knocked down or drenched, and it later became associated with “dowsing” as a supposed occult practice of finding water with a rod.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Germanic
PGmc
*dūskōną
“to strike, beat down (reconstructed ancestor often linked to later forms)”
Old English
OE
dūsian
“to suffocate, become extinguished”
Middle English
ME
dousen
“to put out, extinguish; also to drench”
16th Century
English
dowse
“to extinguish or soak thoroughly”
Modern English
English
dowse
“to extinguish a flame or to drench something with liquid”