1. past tense of intumesced: swelled or puffed up, especially due to heat or internal pressure
Usage: technical; formal

Examples

• The material intumesced when exposed to high temperatures.
• The foam intumesced rapidly as the chemical reaction proceeded.
• The paint intumesced and bubbled under the intense heat of the fire.
• The polymer intumesced to several times its original size.
• As the temperature rose, the coating intumesced to form a protective char layer.