Meaning
To subject to great heat and then (often slow) cooling, and sometimes reheating and further cooling, for the purpose of rendering less brittle; to temper; to toughen.
Etymology
Origin: Old English
From Middle English anelen, onelen, from Old English onǣlan (“to burn, ignite, set fire to, consume, heat, enlighten, incite, inflame, inspire, kindle”), from Proto-Germanic *ana (“on”) + Proto-Germanic *ailijaną (“to burn”), from Proto-Indo-European *h₂eydʰ- (“to burn”). The double-N spelling may have arisen by analogy with Latinate verbs like announce, annex, and annul. The word is related to Old English onāl (“that which is burnt, burning; incense”), Old English āl (“fire, burning”), Icelandic eldur (“fire”), Swedish eld (“fire, flame”), Danish ild (“fire”).
Synonyms & Antonyms
Synonyms
NYT Puzzle Appearances
Accepted in 23 recorded puzzles:
- 2026-09-21NABEJLY
- 2026-08-11NAELMTY
- 2026-08-02NACDEHL
- 2026-04-23ADQLENU
- 2026-04-12NALECHO
- 2025-11-25EAONLGH
- 2025-11-01LAMEDHN
- 2025-09-20ADENYZL
- 2025-09-05ABEJLNY
- 2025-08-03EAOLGNY
- 2025-05-25NPAOEBL
- 2025-05-17LZATIEN
+11 earlier appearances in the archive.