fire 1 of 2

1
as in inferno
a destructive burning a number of suspicious fires in the neighborhood recently

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fire

2 of 2

verb

1
as in to shoot
to cause (a projectile) to be driven forward with force police officers firing rubber bullets

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2
as in to blast
to cause a weapon to release a missile with great force soldiers fired at the enemy in panic-stricken disorder

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of fire
Noun
Then Theo directs their digital home assistant to play their song and put on a fire before the screen goes white. Erin Jensen, USA Today, 31 Aug. 2025 Ron Richmond, executive director of the Indiana chapter of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, said his union represents drivers and maintenance staff at the Department of Public Works, civilian employees at the fire and police departments, library workers and more. Jordan Smith, IndyStar, 31 Aug. 2025
Verb
Newton was hired in March after the commission voted to fire Downs in a seemingly sudden move. Nora O'Neill, Charlotte Observer, 20 Aug. 2025 Finally, there were several unsportsmanlike penalties last year against players who celebrated a play by pretending to fire a gun. Stewart Mandel, New York Times, 20 Aug. 2025 See All Example Sentences for fire
Recent Examples of Synonyms for fire
Noun
  • Taylor Swift poured tanks of gasoline on social media, struck a match and lit the internet in an inferno of excitement.
    Bryan West, The Tennessean, 13 Aug. 2025
  • It is not yet known whether the person died in the inferno or drowned.
    Escher Walcott, People.com, 20 July 2025
Noun
  • And the intensity appears to be taking on a championship level as both Lionel Messi and Jordi Alba are very likely to make their returns to Miami’s lineup for the matchup.
    Michelle Kaufman, Miami Herald, 27 Aug. 2025
  • This dynamic took on fresh intensity on Monday, when Trump renewed his criticisms of Pritzker, taunting his physical fitness and musing about sending the National Guard to Chicago.
    Samantha-Jo Roth, The Washington Examiner, 27 Aug. 2025
Noun
  • In the interview, Dunst shared that the medical ordeal took place while Plemons, 37, and their children were staying with her in the Hungarian capital.
    Jay Stahl, USA Today, 22 Aug. 2025
  • Contrast that with today’s college move-in days, which involve whole families helping the college student—and so much stuff U-Haul has an entire section of its website devoted to the ordeal… er, experience.
    Catherine Salfino, Sourcing Journal, 22 Aug. 2025
Verb
  • The breaths stimulate your vagus nerve, which flips on the opposite response: the aptly named rest and digest—which regulates both brain and gut.
    Erica Sloan, SELF, 27 Aug. 2025
  • Red-light therapy devices for hair growth are some of the most promising noninvasive tools for targeting hair loss, with research showing that wavelengths around 650 nanometers can stimulate follicles, increase blood flow, and energize scalp cells.
    Malia Griggs, Glamour, 25 Aug. 2025
Verb
  • While those numbers were solid, he was also sacked 68 times, due much in part to the 23-year-old holding on to the football for too long.
    Matthew Schmidt, MSNBC Newsweek, 24 Aug. 2025
  • Hopper later sacked Milroe for a 3-yard loss on a fourth-and-2.
    Rob Reischel, Forbes.com, 23 Aug. 2025
Verb
  • The two candidates are the only Republicans who have thrown their hats into the ring so far ahead of the 2026 election, but there are a number of Democrats vying for the position as well.
    Joyce Orlando, Nashville Tennessean, 21 Aug. 2025
  • Stanton is getting time there because Aaron Judge is recovering from an elbow injury and there are mixed messages about how much throwing the two-time MVP can do at this point.
    Larry Fleisher, Forbes.com, 21 Aug. 2025
Verb
  • The pair, who met as college undergrads, both burned with idealism and recognized their privilege could be leveraged for a game-changing idea.
    Carole Horst, Variety, 13 Sep. 2023
  • The Ellen MacArthur Foundation promotes circular fashion and says that, in the United States, an amount of clothing equal to a garbage truck is ferried to landfills or burned every second.
    Neeti Mehra, Treehugger, 13 Sep. 2023
Noun
  • In places without a data center, local officials expressed enthusiasm about the prospect of expanding the tax base.
    Justin Worland, Time, 27 Aug. 2025
  • However, the enthusiasm was short-lived, as the sell-off on Monday revealed that investors remain anxious about the uncertainties regarding the frequency and magnitude of potential rate cuts.
    Trefis Team, Forbes.com, 27 Aug. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Fire.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/fire. Accessed 3 Sep. 2025.

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