What does "fire" mean?

1. (heat and flames) the heat, light, and flames produced when something burns. 2. (shooting weapons) the act of shooting bullets or shells from guns. 3. (strong emotion) a strong feeling of passion, anger, or energy. 4. (to dismiss from a job) to tell someone they can no longer work at their job, usually because of a problem. 5. (to shoot a weapon) to shoot a gun or other weapon. 6. (to heat ceramics) to heat clay or bricks in a very hot oven to make them hard. 7. (excellent) very good, impressive, or cool.

fire — meaning, definition & examples

Word

01heat and flames

A1 · Beginner Uncountable noun

n. the heat, light, and flames produced when something burns.

n. the state of combustion or the visible effect of a chemical reaction involving fuel and oxygen.

“We sat around the camp fire to keep warm during the cold night.”

“The investigators determined that the fire had originated in the basement due to faulty electrical wiring near the furnace.”

Synonyms

flames blaze combustion

02shooting weapons

B1 · Intermediate Uncountable noun

n. the act of shooting bullets or shells from guns.

n. the discharge of firearms or artillery; often used in military contexts.

“The soldiers were ordered to hold their fire until the enemy was closer.”

“The heavy artillery fire continued throughout the night, making it impossible for the rescue teams to reach the stranded civilians.”

Synonyms

gunfire bombardment

03strong emotion

B2 · Upper Intermediate Uncountable noun

n. a strong feeling of passion, anger, or energy.

n. intense enthusiasm, passion, or spirit; often used to describe intellectual or emotional drive.

“You could see the fire in her eyes as she talked about her new project.”

“The young pianist played with such fire and technical precision that the audience remained silent for several seconds after the final note.”

Synonyms

passion intensity spirit

Antonyms

apathy indifference

04to dismiss from a job

B1 · Intermediate business

v. to tell someone they can no longer work at their job, usually because of a problem.

v. to terminate an employment contract, typically due to poor performance or misconduct.

“The company had to fire him after he was late for work three times in a week.”

“The board of directors voted to fire the CEO following the revelation of the accounting scandal.”

Synonyms

dismiss sack terminate

Antonyms

hire recruit

05to shoot a weapon

A2 · Elementary

v. to shoot a gun or other weapon.

v. to discharge a firearm, missile, or other projectile weapon.

“The hunter fired his rifle at the target in the distance.”

“The naval vessel fired a warning shot across the bow of the unidentified ship to signal it to stop.”

Synonyms

shoot discharge launch

06to heat ceramics

B2 · Upper Intermediate Science Technical

v. to heat clay or bricks in a very hot oven to make them hard.

v. to subject ceramics or glass to high heat in a kiln to achieve a permanent state of hardness or glaze.

“The artist needs to fire the clay pots in the kiln overnight.”

“If the porcelain is not fired at the correct temperature, the glaze will fail to bond properly with the surface.”

Synonyms

bakekiln-dry

07excellent

C1 · Advanced Slang

adj. very good, impressive, or cool.

adj. of exceptional quality; highly impressive or aesthetically pleasing.

“That new song is fire; I have been listening to it all day.”

“The production on his latest album is absolutely fire, blending vintage synths with modern trap beats seamlessly.”

Synonyms

amazing excellent lit

Antonyms

trash bad

From Middle English fyr, from Old English fȳr (“fire”), from Proto-West Germanic fuir, from fuïr, a regularised form of Proto-Germanic fōr (“fire”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European péh₂wr̥. Cognates See also Scots feier, fyre (“fire”), Yola vier, vire (“fire”), Saterland Frisian Fjuur, Fjúur (“fire”), West Frisian fjoer (“fire”), Alemannic German Füür (“fire”), Bavarian Feia (“fire”), Central Franconian Fauer, Feier, Füür (“fire”), Cimbrian bôar, vaür, vôar (“fire”), Dutch vier, vuur (“fire”), German Feuer (“fire”), German Low German Füer, Füür (“fire”), Luxembourgish Feier (“fire”), Mòcheno vaier (“fire”), Vilamovian faojer (“fire”), West Flemish vier (“fire”), Yiddish פֿײַער (fayer, “fire”), Danish, Norwegian Bokmål, Norwegian Nynorsk and Swedish fyr (“fire”), Icelandic funi (“fire”), Gothic 𐍆𐍉𐌽 (fōn, “fire”). Also, compare Armenian հուր (hur, “fire”), Greek πυρ (pyr, “fire”), Latin pūrgō (“to clean, cleanse, clear, purge, purify”), Umbrian 𐌐𐌉𐌓 (pir, “fire”), Bulgarian фир (fir, “ooze, pickle, soak”), Polish perz (“smoke”), Hittite 𒉺𒄴𒄯 (paḫḫur, “fire”), Luwian 𒉺𒀀𒄷𒌋𒌨 (pāhūr, “fire”), Tocharian A/B por/puwar (“fire”). This was an inanimate noun whose animate counterpart was Proto-Indo-European *h₁n̥gʷnis (see ignite). Cognate to pyre.

From Middle English firen, fyren, furen, from Old English fȳrian (“to make a fire”), from the noun (see above). Cognate with Old Frisian fioria (“to light a fire”), Saterland Frisian fjuurje (“to fire”), Middle Dutch vûren, vueren, vieren (“to set fire”), Dutch vuren (“to fire, shoot”), Old High German fiuren (“to ignite, set on fire”), German feuern (“to fire”).

Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

VERB

fireproof(B2)