Did you know?

Click any word in a definition or example to find the entry for that word

fire

 - definition
Close

What are red words?

90% of the time, speakers of English use just 7,500 words in speech and writing.These words appear in red, and are graded with stars. One-star words are frequent, two-star words are morefrequent, and three-star words are the most frequent.

Close

Thesaurus

The thesaurus of synonyms and related words is fully integrated into the dictionary entries. Click on the T button in an entry to review the synonyms and related words for that meaning.

more
noun British English pronunciation: fire /ˈfaɪə(r)/ 
Word Forms
Close
singularfire
pluralfires
 
  1. 1
    [countable/uncountable] flames and heat from something that is burning in an uncontrolled way

    The school was badly damaged by fire.

    Three children died in a fire at their home last night.

    be destroyed by fire:

    The theatre was completely destroyed by fire.

    start a fire:

    It is thought that local youths may have started the fire.

    fight/tackle/put out a fire:

    Twenty firefighters tackled the fire.

    a fire breaks out:

    a fire broke out in a Paris nightclub.

    a forest fire:

    The hot dry weather has increased the risk of forest fires.

    Thesaurus entry for this meaning of  fireThesaurus entry for this meaning of fire
  2. 2
    [countable] a small pile of burning wood, coal etc that you make in order to produce heat

    a coal fire

    make/build a fire:

    We went off to collect wood to build a fire.

    light a fire:

    Once the fire was lit, the room seemed more inviting.

    a blazing/roaring fire:

    We sat in front of a blazing log fire.

    Thesaurus entry for this meaning of  fireThesaurus entry for this meaning of fire
  3. 3
    [countable] British a piece of equipment that uses electricity or gas to heat a room
    an electric/gas fire:

    There was an old gas fire in the bedroom.

    Thesaurus entry for this meaning of  fireThesaurus entry for this meaning of fire
  4. 4
    [uncountable] shots from a gun

    We heard a sudden loud burst of machine gun fire.

    Armed police arrived on the scene, and there was an exchange of fire.

    Thesaurus entry for this meaning of  fireThesaurus entry for this meaning of fire
  5. 5
    [uncountable] formal strong feelings such as anger or enthusiasm

    His words were full of fire and passion.

    Thesaurus entry for this meaning of  fireThesaurus entry for this meaning of fire

phrases

This is the British English definition of fire. View American English definition of fire.

Change your default dictionary and thesaurus to American English.

 

showmance

a romantic relationship between two members of the cast of a play, film or television series

BuzzWord Article

Word of the Day Word of the Day

soapstone

a type of soft stone that is often carved to make decorations

Open Dictionary

human-readable

able to be read and understood by people

add a word

Blog

A must for anyone with an interest in the changing face of language. The Macmillan Dictionary blog explores English as it is spoken around the world today.

global English and language change from our blog