simmer

1. (intransitive) To cook or undergo heating slowly at or below the boiling point.Examples: "The soup simmered on the stove."; "The locomotive was the now inevitable American 2-8-0, No. 2623. There she stood, effectively blocking the level crossing, simmering gently, massively inert. It was almost dark, and one's final sight was of her high, firelit cab, the enginemen nonchalantly leaning out, waiting for the right-away, while impatient road convoys piled up on both sides of the crossing."; "That way, the heat can circulate under the meat and prevent it from simmering in its juices."intransitive

2. (transitive) To cause to cook or to cause to undergo heating slowly at or below the boiling point.Examples: "Simmer the soup for five minutes, then serve."; "There are other easy ways you can bake and simmer and sauté wild game without qualifying as a gourmet cook."Synonyms: coddletransitive

3. (intransitive, figurative) To be on the point of breaking out into anger; to be agitated.Examples: "Maybe that really did happen, and Robin's anger at his wife had simmered for this long?"figurativelyintransitive

4. (intransitive, figurative) To remain angry with someone or something past the point of exhaustion; to resign oneself to holding a grudge, especially after some failed attempts to resolve a situation.Examples: "I tried to get through to him; all that's left for me to do is simmer."figurativelyintransitive

5. (intransitive, figurative) To develop gradually, of an idea or plan.Examples: "The idea for The Sims was one that had been simmering in Wright's mind for quite some time, and was initially conceived as an architecture simulation."Synonyms: gestate, fermentfigurativelyintransitive