# quench

> English word · Verb · IPA /kwɛnt͡ʃ/ · frequency rank #33,381

## Definitions
1. To satisfy, especially a literal or figurative thirst.
2. To extinguish or put out (as a fire or light).
3. To cool rapidly by direct contact with liquid coolant, as a blacksmith quenching hot iron.
4. To terminate or greatly diminish (a chemical reaction) by destroying or deforming the remaining reagents.
5. To rapidly change the parameters of a physical system.
6. To rapidly terminate the operation of a superconducting electromagnet by causing part or all of the magnet's windings to enter the normal, resistive state.

## Etymology
From Middle English quenchen, from Old English cwenċan, from Proto-Germanic *kwankijaną.

## Easily confused with
- **Quincy** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/quench-vs-quincy)
- **quince** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/quench-vs-quince)

## Common misspellings (9)
`qeunch`, `qquench`, `quecnh`, `quencch`, `quenchh`, `quenhc`, `quennch`, `qunech`, `uqench`

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/quench