Meaning

noun the residue that remains when something is burned

verb convert into ashes

noun any of various deciduous pinnate-leaved ornamental or timber trees of the genus Fraxinus

originFrom Middle English aisshe, asche, ash, asshe, axe, eshe, esk, from Old English acse, asċe, axe, axse, æsċe, from Proto-West Germanic *askā, from Proto-Germanic *askǭ (“ash”), from Proto-Indo-European *h₂eHs- (“to be dry; to burn; hearth; ashes”).…

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 3.0