firestorm
noun
fire·storm
ˈfī(-ə)r-ˌstȯrm 
1
: a very intense and destructive fire usually accompanied by high winds
The Rooses' house and gardens were obliterated in the 1991 Oakland firestorm.—
Craig Summers Black
Craig Summers Black
especially
: one that is started by attack with nuclear or incendiary weapons and that creates a powerful updraft which causes very strong inrushing winds to develop in the surrounding area
His goal was to create firestorms like the ones that had consumed Hamburg and Dresden, conflagrations so vast and intense that nothing could survive them … —David M. Kennedy
David M. Kennedy 2
a
: a sudden or violent outburst
a firestorm of public protest
b
: a raging controversy
a political firestorm
Examples of firestorm in a Sentence
The bombing left the city engulfed in a firestorm.
His proposal set off a political firestorm.
a firestorm of public protest
Recent Examples on the Web
Shin Bet also blamed policies enacted by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government as contributing factors, setting off a political firestorm.
—Lauren Izso, CNN, 4 Mar. 2025
That’s why the House passage last week of a budget blueprint 20 months before anyone votes in a general election has ignited a political firestorm.
—David Lightman, Sacramento Bee, 4 Mar. 2025
Bove’s directive for prosecutors to drop Adams’ case touched off firestorms within the Justice Department and New York political circles, with seven federal prosecutors quitting in protest — including the interim U.S. attorney for Manhattan — and fellow Democrats calling on Adams to resign.
—Michael R. Sisak, Chicago Tribune, 18 Feb. 2025
The judge presiding over the sweeping public corruption case against Mayor Adams on Tuesday ordered prosecutors for the Department of Justice to appear in court to explain their reasons for seeking to drop it amid a fast-developing legal and political firestorm.
—Molly Crane-Newman, New York Daily News, 18 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for firestorm
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Lauren Izso, CNN, 4 Mar. 2025
That’s why the House passage last week of a budget blueprint 20 months before anyone votes in a general election has ignited a political firestorm.
—David Lightman, Sacramento Bee, 4 Mar. 2025
Bove’s directive for prosecutors to drop Adams’ case touched off firestorms within the Justice Department and New York political circles, with seven federal prosecutors quitting in protest — including the interim U.S. attorney for Manhattan — and fellow Democrats calling on Adams to resign.
—Michael R. Sisak, Chicago Tribune, 18 Feb. 2025
The judge presiding over the sweeping public corruption case against Mayor Adams on Tuesday ordered prosecutors for the Department of Justice to appear in court to explain their reasons for seeking to drop it amid a fast-developing legal and political firestorm.
—Molly Crane-Newman, New York Daily News, 18 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for firestorm
Articles Related to firestorm
Cite this Entry
“Firestorm.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/firestorm. Accessed 13 Mar. 2025.
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