on fire

O o

Transcription

- US Pronunciation
- US IPA
- [on, awn fahyuh r]
- /ɒn, ɔn faɪər/

- US Pronunciation
- US IPA
- [on, awn fahyuh r]
- /ɒn, ɔn faɪər/

Definitions of on fire words

noun on fire a state, process, or instance of combustion in which fuel or other material is ignited and combined with oxygen, giving off light, heat, and flame. 1
noun on fire a burning mass of material, as on a hearth or in a furnace. 1
noun on fire the destructive burning of a building, town, forest, etc.; conflagration. 1
noun on fire heat used for cooking, especially the lighted burner of a stove: Put the kettle on the fire. 1
noun on fire Greek fire. 1
noun on fire flashing light; luminous appearance. 1

See all 63 definitions of on fire

Information block about the term

Origin of on fire

First appearance:

before 900

One of the 4% oldest English words

before 900; (noun) Middle English; Old English fȳr; cognate with Old Norse fūrr, German Feuer, Greek pŷr (see pyro-); (v.) Middle English firen to kindle, inflame, derivative of the noun

Historical Comparancy

Parts of speech for On fire

noun

adjective

verb

adverb

pronoun

preposition

conjunction

determiner

exclamation

Full grammatical hierarchy of On fire

on fire popularity

A common word. It’s meaning is known to most children of preschool age. About 100% of English native speakers know the meaning and use the word.

Most Europeans know this English word. The frequency of it’s usage is somewhere between "mom" and "screwdriver".

on fire usage trend in Literature

This diagram is provided by Google Ngram Viewer

Synonyms for on fire

adj on fire

ablaze — Something that is ablaze is burning very fiercely.
aflame — If something is on fire, you can say it is aflame.
broiling — If the weather is broiling, it is very hot.
burning — You use burning to describe something that is extremely hot.
calescent — increasing in heat

adv on fire

adjective on fire

afire — If something is afire or is set afire, it is on fire or looks as if it is on fire.
alight — If something is alight, it is burning.
excited — awakened
flaming — flame
ignited — to set on fire; kindle.

All 26 Synonyms of on fire