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fire

See also: FIRE and fíre

Contents

EnglishEdit

 
A large fire (1)
 
A small fire from a lighter (1)
 
The fire of a stationary minigun (7)

EtymologyEdit

From Middle English fier, from Old English fȳr (“fire”), from *fuïr, a regularised form of Proto-Germanic *fōr (“fire”) (compare Saterland Frisian Fjuur, West Frisian fjoer, Dutch vuur, Low German Füer, German Feuer, Danish fyr), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *péh₂ur. Compare Hittite 𒉺𒀪𒄯 (paḫḫur), Umbrian pir, Tocharian A/B por/puwar, Czech pýř (“hot ashes”), Ancient Greek πῦρ (pûr, “fire”), Armenian հուր (hur, “fire”)) and Sanskrit पावक (pāvaka) . This was an inanimate noun whose animate counterpart was Proto-Indo-European *h₁n̥gʷnis (see ignite). Doublet of pyre.

PronunciationEdit

NounEdit

fire (countable and uncountable, plural fires)

  1. (uncountable) A (usually self-sustaining) chemical reaction involving the bonding of oxygen with carbon or other fuel, with the production of heat and the presence of flame or smouldering.
  2. (countable) An instance of this chemical reaction, especially when intentionally created and maintained in a specific location to a useful end (such as a campfire or a hearth fire).
    We sat around the fire singing songs and telling stories.
    • 1913, Joseph C. Lincoln, chapter 8, in Mr. Pratt's Patients:
      We toted in the wood and got the fire going nice and comfortable. Lord James still set in one of the chairs and Applegate had cabbaged the other and was hugging the stove.
  3. (countable) The occurrence, often accidental, of fire in a certain place, causing damage and danger.
    There was a fire at the school last night and the whole place burned down.
    During hot and dry summers many fires in forests are caused by regardlessly discarded cigarette butts.
  4. (uncountable, alchemy, philosophy) The aforementioned chemical reaction of burning, considered one of the Classical elements or basic elements of alchemy.
  5. (countable, Britain) A heater or stove used in place of a real fire (such as an electric fire).
  6. (countable) The elements necessary to start a fire.
    The fire was laid and needed to be lit.
  7. (uncountable) The bullets or other projectiles fired from a gun.
    The fire from the enemy guns kept us from attacking.
  8. Strength of passion, whether love or hate.
    • Atterbury
      He had fire in his temper.
  9. Liveliness of imagination or fancy; intellectual and moral enthusiasm.
  10. Splendour; brilliancy; lustre; hence, a star.
  11. (countable) A button (on a joypad, joystick or similar device) usually used to make a video game character fire a weapon.
    Press fire to fire the gun.

SynonymsEdit

Derived termsEdit

Terms derived from fire (noun)

TranslationsEdit

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables, removing any numbers. Numbers do not necessarily match those in definitions. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout#Translations.
Translations to be checked

VerbEdit

fire (third-person singular simple present fires, present participle firing, simple past and past participle fired)

  1. (transitive) To set (something) on fire.
    • 1897, H.G. Wells, The Invisible Man Chapter 20:
      "Then I slipped up again with a box of matches, fired my heap of paper and rubbish, put the chairs and bedding thereby, led the gas to the affair, by means of an india-rubber tube, and waving a farewell to the room left it for the last time." ¶ "You fired the house!" exclaimed Kemp. ¶ "Fired the house. It was the only way to cover my trail—and no doubt it was insured."
    • 1907, Jack London, The Iron Heel
      It was long a question of debate, whether the burning of the South Side ghetto was accidental, or whether it was done by the Mercenaries; but it is definitely settled now that the ghetto was fired by the Mercenaries under orders from their chiefs.
  2. (transitive) To heat without setting on fire, as ceramic, metal objects, etc.
    If you fire the pottery at too high a temperature, it may crack.
    They fire the wood to make it easier to put a point on the end.
    • 1908, W[illiam] B[lair] M[orton] Ferguson, Zollenstein, New York, N.Y.: D. Appleton & Company, OCLC 29686887 , chapter IV:
      So this was my future home, I thought! Certainly it made a brave picture. I had seen similar ones fired-in on many a Heidelberg stein. Backed by towering hills, […] a sky of palest Gobelin flecked with fat, fleecy little clouds, it in truth looked a dear little city; the city of one's dreams.
  3. (transitive) To drive away by setting a fire.
  4. (transitive) To terminate the employment contract of (an employee), especially for cause (such as misconduct or poor performance).
    • 1969, Vladimir Nabokov, Ada or Ardor, Penguin 2011, p.226:
      The first, obvious choice was hysterical and fantastic Blanche – had there not been her timidity, her fear of being ‘fired’ […].
  5. (transitive) To shoot (a device that launches a projectile or a pulse or stream of something).
    We will fire our guns at the enemy.
    He fired his radar gun at passing cars.
  6. (intransitive) To shoot a gun, a cannon or a similar weapon.
    Don't fire until you see the whites of their eyes.
    His nail gun fired about twenty roofing nails a minute.
  7. (transitive, sports) To shoot; to attempt to score a goal.
    • 2010 December 29, Mark Vesty, “Wigan 2-2 Arsenal”, in BBC:
      Andrey Arshavin equalised with a superb volley into the corner before Nicklas Bendtner coolly fired Arsenal in front.
  8. (intransitive, physiology) To cause an action potential in a cell.
    When a neuron fires, it transmits information.
  9. (transitive) To forcibly direct (something).
    He answered the questions the reporters fired at him.
  10. (intransitive, computer sciences, software engineering) To initiate an event (by means of an event handler).
    The event handler should only fire after all web page content has finished loading.
  11. To inflame; to irritate, as the passions.
    to fire the soul with anger, pride, or revenge
  12. To animate; to give life or spirit to.
    to fire the genius of a young man
  13. To feed or serve the fire of.
    to fire a boiler
  14. To light up as if by fire; to illuminate.
  15. (farriery) To cauterize.
  16. (intransitive, dated) To catch fire; to be kindled.
  17. (intransitive, dated) To be irritated or inflamed with passion.

SynonymsEdit

AntonymsEdit

  • (to terminate the employment): hire

Derived termsEdit

Terms derived from the verb to fire

TranslationsEdit

to set on fire — see set on fire
farriery: to cauterize — see cauterize
The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables, removing any numbers. Numbers do not necessarily match those in definitions. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout#Translations.
Translations to be checked

AdjectiveEdit

fire (not comparable)

  1. (slang) Amazing; excellent.
    That shit is fire, yo!

TranslationsEdit

InterjectionEdit

fire!

  1. A cry of distress indicating that something is on fire.
  2. A signal to shoot.
TranslationsEdit

StatisticsEdit

Most common English words before 1923 in Project Gutenberg: towards · friends · forth · #378: fire · lost · human · kept

Further readingEdit

AnagramsEdit

AsturianEdit

VerbEdit

fire

  1. third-person singular present indicative of firir

Crimean TatarEdit

NounEdit

fire

  1. shrinkage, loss
  2. scrap

DanishEdit

Etymology 1Edit

From Old Norse fjórir, from Proto-Germanic *fedwōr, from Proto-Indo-European *kʷetwóres (“four”).

PronunciationEdit

  • IPA(key): /fiːrə/, [ˈfiːɐ]

NumeralEdit

fire

  1. (cardinal) four

Etymology 2Edit

From Middle Low German fīren, from French virer (“bear, veer”).

PronunciationEdit

  • IPA(key): /fiːrə/, [ˈfiːɐ]

VerbEdit

fire (imperative fir, infinitive at fire, present tense firer, past tense firede, perfect tense har firet)

  1. to lower something fixed to a rope or something similar
    • 1871, Jens Andreas Friis, Lappisk Mythologi, page 138
      Saa gik han hen og firede Stenen og Vidietouget ned i Hullet.
      Then he went [to the hole] and lowered the rock and the wicker rope down into the hole.
    • 2014, Teddy Vork, Diget, Tellerup A/S ISBN 9788758811086
      Han satte sig på knæ, famlede sig frem til tovet og vendte sig rundt så han havde ryggen til hullet, drejede overkroppen bagud, firede faklen ned i hullet.
      He kneeled, fumbled his way to the rope and turned around, such that his back was to the hole, twisted his torse backwards, lowered the torch into the hole.
ConjugationEdit
Inflection of fire
imperative fir infinitive fire
present tense firer past tense firede
auxiliary verb have past participle firet
perfect tense har firet pluperfect tense havde firet
present participle - gerund —
passive fires passive past firedes


ItalianEdit

EtymologyEdit

From Latin fierī (“to become, be”), present active infinitive of fiō. Compare Romanian fi.

PronunciationEdit

  • IPA(key): /ˈfire/, [ˈfiː.r̺e]
  • Hyphenation: fì‧re

VerbEdit

fire

  1. (northern Italy, obsolete) to be

Usage notesEdit

  • The only forms attested outside of ancient Northern Italian literature are the future fia (third-person singular) and fiano (third-person plural).

Norwegian BokmålEdit

Norwegian cardinal numbers
 <  3 4 5  > 
    Cardinal : fire
    Ordinal : fjerde

Etymology 1Edit

From Danish fire, Old Norse fjórir, from Proto-Germanic *fedwōr, from *kʷetwṓr, the neuter form of Proto-Indo-European *kʷetwóres.

PronunciationEdit

NumeralEdit

fire

  1. (cardinal) four
Related termsEdit
Derived termsEdit
Terms derived from fire (numeral)

Etymology 2Edit

From French virer, via Middle Low German firen

VerbEdit

fire (imperative fir, present tense firer, passive fires, simple past fira or firet or firte, past participle fira or firet or firt, present participle firende)

  1. to slacken, ease
  2. to lower (a flag)

ReferencesEdit

Norwegian NynorskEdit

Etymology 1Edit

From Old Norse fjórir, via Danish fire.

NumeralEdit

fire

  1. (cardinal) four
Related termsEdit
Derived termsEdit

Etymology 2Edit

From French virer, via Middle Low German firen

VerbEdit

fire

  1. to slacken, ease
  2. to lower (a flag)

ReferencesEdit

RomanianEdit

Etymology 1Edit

NounEdit

fire

  1. plural of fir

Etymology 2Edit

fi +‎ -re

NounEdit

fire

  1. essence, substance, nature
  2. character, temper, disposition
  3. mind
SynonymsEdit
Related termsEdit

TurkishEdit

NounEdit

fire (definite accusative fireyi, plural fireler)

  1. wastage
  2. outage
  3. shrinkage, loss, loss in weight, decrease
  4. turnover
  5. ullage
  6. leakage
  7. waste, tret, deficiency
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