slow burn

slow burn

A gradual development that increases in strength or power over time. It's going to be a slow burn before we start earning serious money on this app. The rebellion against the government had been a slow burn, as decades of mistreatment slowly fueled the fires of unrest.

See also: burn, slow

slow burn

Slowly increasing anger. It is often put as do a slow burn, meaning "gradually grow angrier," as in I did a slow burn when he kept me waiting for three hours. The burn in this idiom comes from burn up in the sense of "make furious." The term was first cited in 1938 and was closely associated with comedian Edgar Kennedy.

See also: burn, slow

a slow burn

A slow burn is a feeling or effect that develops gradually. In a single weekend the slow burn of public disgust turned into a bonfire. He promised a slow burn campaign over the next 18 months to support the idea of economic change. Note: In American English, people say that someone does a slow burn if they gradually become more and more angry. Wilson, sensing a challenge to his power, did a slow burn.

See also: burn, slow

slow burn

a state of slowly mounting anger or annoyance. informal

See also: burn, slow

slow burn

n. the act of becoming angry very slowly or being resentful for a long period of time. (see also do a slow burn.) His lips were pressed together and he was angry but just having a slow burn.

See also: burn, slow