singe

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition

1. v. To burn superficially; scorch.
2. v. To burn off the feathers or bristles of (a carcass of a bird or animal) by subjecting briefly to flame. See Synonyms at burn¹.
3. v. To burn the ends of (hair, for example).
4. v. To burn the nap from (cloth) in manufacturing.
5. n. A slight or surface burn; a scorch.

Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia

1. To burn superficially; especially, to burn off the ends or projections of: as, to singe a fowl (to burn off the small downy or thready feathers left after plucking); to singe cloth or calico (to burn off the projecting pile or nap); to singe the hair of the head.
2. To parch; make arid and dry.
3. To act on with an effect similar to that of heat: said of extreme cold.
4. Figuratively, to injure superficially; come near injuring seriously; harm.
5. Synonyms Sear, etc. See scorch.
6. n. A burning of the surface; a scorching; hence, a heat capable of singeing.
7. n. An injury or hurt caused by singeing; a superficial burn.

Wiktionary

1. v. transitive To burn slightly.
2. n. A burning of the surface; a slight burn.

GNU Webster's 1913

1. v. To burn slightly or superficially; to burn the surface of; to burn the ends or outside of.
2. v. To remove the nap of (cloth), by passing it rapidly over a red-hot bar, or over a flame, preliminary to dyeing it.
3. v. To remove the hair or down from (a plucked chicken or the like) by passing it over a flame.
4. n. A burning of the surface; a slight burn.

WordNet 3.0

1. v. burn superficially or lightly
2. n. a surface burn
3. v. become superficially burned