rain fire and brimstone
To send horror or destruction.
Meaning adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
“The angry boss rained fire and brimstone on the lazy team.”
“When the scandal broke, the media rained fire and brimstone upon the politician for his dishonest behavior.”
“The ancient prophecy warned that if the king ignored his duties, the heavens would rain fire and brimstone upon his kingdom.”
first recorded 17th c.
A reference to the The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], 1611, →OCLC, Psalms 11:6: “Upon the wicked hee [God] shall raine snares, fire and brimstone, and an horrible tempest: this shall be the portion of their cup.”
- 01
add fuel to the fire
To worsen a conflict between people; to inflame an already tense situation.
- 02
ball of fire
A person who is especially active, ambitious, hard-working, or high-achieving.
- 03
catch fire
To become engulfed in flames, to combust.
- 04
draw fire
To create a distraction that allows one's friends, co-workers, or other associates to gain an advantage over the distracted party.
- 05
escape fire
An unconventional or counterintuitive solution to a difficult problem.
- 06
feed the fire
Synonym of add fuel to the fire.
- 07
fight fire with fire
To respond to an attack with a similar or identical counter-attack (e.g. to respond to gunfire with reciprocal gunfire).
- 08
fight fires
To deal with urgent matters and minor emergencies rather than longer-term work.
Last updated August 10, 2026