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fuse

/fjuːz//fjuːz/·verb, noun
to join or blend into one by melting; (noun) a safety wire that melts to break a circuit
Fig. 1 — I watch two plates slide in from either side until their edges just touch.
01Definition

To fuse is to join two things into one by melting them together, so completely that the boundary is gone — metals fuse under heat, and by extension genres, ideas, and cultures fuse into something new. From the Latin fundere 'to pour or melt'. The same spelling names a very different noun: a fuse is the thin wire in a circuit that melts and breaks when the current runs too high. Where two edges coalesce under heat they fuse; unlike things that merely diverge, what is fused cannot be pulled apart.

02In use
  • iUnder the torch's heat the two steel plates fuse into a single piece.
  • iiThe band's sound fuses jazz drumming with traditional folk melodies.
  • iiiIn a star, hydrogen nuclei fuse and release the energy that makes it shine.
03Collocations
  • fuse together
  • fuse into one
  • blow a fuse
  • nuclear fusion
  • fuse metals

Family fusion (noun) · fused (adjective)

04Relations

=merge, weld, blend, coalesce, unite

≠separate, split, diverge

05Compared
PairThe difference
fuse vs amalgamatemerge organizations into one under a single name, parts still traceable → amalgamate; melt or weld things into one inseparable mass with no seam → fuse.
fuse vs blendmix things into one smooth whole → blend; melt or weld things into one inseparable mass with no seam → fuse.
fuse vs coalescelet separate things grow together into one on their own → coalesce; melt or weld things into one inseparable mass with no seam → fuse.
fuse vs coincidetwo independent things share the same point or time, staying separate → coincide; melt or weld things into one inseparable mass → fuse.
fuse vs combinebring things together while each keeps its identity → combine; melt two things into one inseparable, seamless whole → fuse.

Also compared with concentrate, consolidate, converge, disband, disperse, dissipate, dissolve, diverge, divide, integrate, intersect, join, meet, merge, scatter, separate, split, unite

06TOEFL & IELTS

Mind the noun/verb split: the verb fuse means to join by melting (metals, genres, and ideas fuse), while the noun fuse is the wire that melts to break a circuit — and 'blow a fuse' (to lose your temper) is informal, not for essays. The noun of the verb is fusion (nuclear fusion, a fusion of styles); keep fusion (joining) apart from fission (splitting), which examiners love to test. Fuse is regular: fused, fusing.

07Asked
Is 'fuse' a noun or a verb?
Both, with unrelated everyday meanings. The verb fuse means to join by melting into one thing — the torch fuses the two plates in the scene above. The noun a fuse is the little wire in a plug or circuit that melts to cut the power when the current gets dangerous. Same spelling, two separate lives; context tells you which.
What is a fuse in electricity?
A deliberate weak link in a circuit — a short, thin strip of wire that melts and breaks the circuit if too much current flows, protecting the wiring and appliances from overheating or catching fire. You meet it in a plug or the household fuse box, rated in amps (a 3-amp or 13-amp fuse). Modern homes often use resettable circuit breakers for the same job.
What does 'blow a fuse' mean?
To suddenly lose your temper — 'he blew a fuse when he saw the bill'. The image is literal: an overloaded electrical fuse melts and cuts the circuit, so a person 'blowing a fuse' has hit their limit and shut down in anger. It is informal and spoken; keep it out of formal essays.
What is the difference between fuse and fusion?
Fuse is the verb (to join by melting); fusion is the noun (the joining or its result) — nuclear fusion, a fusion of cuisines. And keep fusion apart from fission: fusion joins small things into a larger one (as in the sun), while fission splits one thing into parts. Exam passages on energy lean on that contrast.
What is the past tense of fuse?
Fused — fuse is a regular verb (fuse, fused, fusing). It works both ways: intransitively things fuse on their own ('the bones fused as they healed'), and transitively heat fuses them ('the kiln fused the glass'). You will often see 'fuse together', where 'together' just adds emphasis and is usually optional.
How do you pronounce fuse?
Fyooz (/fjuːz/) — one syllable, rhyming with 'use' as a verb and with 'views'. The tricky part is the ending: the -se is voiced, a /z/ sound, not a hissing /s/. Same vowel as 'few' followed by that z. The related noun fusion adds a syllable: FYOO-zhun.
What is the difference between fuse and blend?
Blend is to mix smoothly, and the result can still be a mixture you could separate in principle — blended coffee, blended colours. Fuse is stronger: the parts join so thoroughly they become one inseparable thing, as if melted together. A blend of styles keeps its ingredients; a fusion of styles makes a new single thing.