Spontaneous combustion - Definition

• Spontaneous combustion can mean the self-ignition, or apparent self-ignition, and burning of any mass; often of highly flammable materials, such as a pile of oily rags; see combustion.
• Spontaneous human combustion is the alleged phenomenon of a human being suddenly bursting into flames, in dramatic cases reducing the person's torso to a pile of ashes, often leaving behind charred limbs.