From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishsootsoot /sʊt/ noun [uncountable] TDblack powder that is produced when something is burned —sooty adjective
Examples from the Corpus
soot• The paint becomes exhausted, the city encroaches with its soot, the plaster crumbles within.• The familiar frowsty smell compounded of soot and chicken meal met her.• Classes gathered round the pipe stoves which gave out a strong smell of soot.• Open fires should always have the chimney regularly swept, otherwise the build up of soot can start a chimney fire.• Chafee also proposed a five-year delay in setting specific limits for fine particulates, or soot, citing scientific uncertainty.• The red bricks were covered with soot, making the structure look like a giant barbecue pit.• All were cream-colored and even in the darkness looked drab with soot.• However I am having a problem with soot from a neighbour's chimney which falls into the pond at regular intervals.Origin soot Old English sot 