Noah Webster's Dictionary 1. (v.) To burn a surface to dryness and hardness; to cauterize; to brand; to expose to a degree of heat such as changes the color or the hardness and texture of the surface; to scorch; to make callous; as, to sear the skin or flesh. Also used figuratively. 2. (a.) Alt. of Sere. 3. (v.) To wither; to dry up. 4. (n.) The catch in a gunlock by which the hammer is held cocked or half cocked. Int. Standard Bible Encyclopedia SEAR ser: In 1 Timothy 4:2 for (kausteriazo), "burn with a hot iron" (compare "cauterize"), the King James Version "having their conscience seared with a hot iron," and the Revised Version margin. "Seared" in this connection means "made insensible," like the surface of a deep burn after healing. The verb, however, probably means "brand" (so the Revised Version (British and American)). "Criminals are branded on their forehead, so that all men may know their infamy. The consciences of certain men are branded just as truly, so that there is an inward consciousness of hypocrisy." See the commentaries