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blaze (n.1)

"bright flame, fire," Old English blæse "a torch, firebrand; bright glowing flame," from Proto-Germanic *blas- "shining, white" (source also of Old Saxon blas "white, whitish," Middle High German blas "bald," originally "white, shining," Old High German blas-ros "horse with a white spot," Middle Dutch and Dutch bles, German Blesse "white spot," blass "pale, whitish"), from PIE root *bhel- (1) "to shine, flash, burn."

blaze (n.2)

1630s, "light-colored mark or spot" on the face of a horse, cow, etc., northern English dialect, probably from Old Norse blesi "white spot on a horse's face," from Proto-Germanic *blas- "shining, white," from the same root as blaze (n.1). Middle Dutch or Low German cognates of the Norse word also have been suggested as the source. Applied 1660s in American English to marks cut on tree trunks to indicate a track; thus the verb meaning "to mark a trail" (1750). Related: Blazed; blazing.

blaze (v.1)

"to burst into flame, burn brightly or vigorously," c. 1200, from blaze (n.1). To blaze away "fire (guns or cannon) continuously" is by 1776, hence "work with vigor and enthusiasm." Related: Blazed; blazing.

blaze (v.2)

"make public" (often in a bad sense, boastfully), late 14c., of uncertain origin, the verb not being found in Old English; perhaps from Middle Dutch blasen "to blow" (on a trumpet), from Proto-Germanic *blaes-an (source also of German blasen, Gothic -blesan), from PIE root *bhle- "to blow." Or connected to blaze (v.1) on the notion of "shine forth."

blaze (v.3)

"to mark" (a tree, a trail), usually by cutting of a piece of bark so as to leave a white spot, 1750, American English, from blaze (n.) "white mark made on a tree" (1660s), from blaze (n.2).

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Definitions of blaze from WordNet
1
blaze (v.)
shine brightly and intensively;
Meteors blazed across the atmosphere
blaze (v.)
shoot rapidly and repeatedly;
He blazed away at the men
Synonyms: blaze away
blaze (v.)
burn brightly and intensely;
The summer sun alone can cause a pine to blaze
blaze (v.)
move rapidly and as if blazing;
The spaceship blazed out into space
Synonyms: blaze out
blaze (v.)
indicate by marking trees with blazes;
blaze a trail
2
blaze (n.)
a strong flame that burns brightly;
the blaze spread rapidly
Synonyms: blazing
blaze (n.)
a cause of difficulty and suffering;
go to blazes
Synonyms: hell
blaze (n.)
noisy and unrestrained mischief;
raising blazes
Synonyms: hell
blaze (n.)
a light within the field of vision that is brighter than the brightness to which the eyes are adapted;
Synonyms: glare / brilliance
blaze (n.)
a light-colored marking;
the horse had a blaze between its eyes
they chipped off bark to mark the trail with blazes
From wordnet.princeton.edu