Definition of "furnace" []

• An enclosure in which energy in a nonthermal form is converted to heat, especially such an enclosure in which heat is generated by the combustion of a suitable fuel. (noun)
• An intensely hot place: the furnace of the sun; an attic room that is a furnace in the summer. (noun)
• A severe test or trial: endured the furnace of his friends' blame after the accident. (noun)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "The woody fibre of the carrots and cabbages is very combustible in the coal furnace, but it is very doubtful if more than 20 or 30 per cent. of this substance is ever burned in the _animal furnace_."
• "The main component of this furnace is a large Fresnel lens."
• "To the right of this furnace is the place of honor; in it guests are received, and at night the men sleep there."