bushfire

noun

bush·​fire ˈbu̇sh-ˌfī(-ə)r How to pronounce bushfire (audio)
Australia
: an uncontrolled fire in a bush area

Examples of bushfire in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web Australia’s bushfire season of 2019-20 was unprecedented in its intensity and magnitude. Laurie Winkless, Forbes, 28 Mar. 2024 The rebirth of Southern Ocean Lodge in December 2023, following the devastating 2020 bushfires, is a story of resilience and rejuvenation. Jordi Lippe-McGraw, Forbes, 16 Feb. 2024 Australia baked through an early-summer heatwave for several days in mid-December that fueled dozens of bushfires. Tom Yulsman, Discover Magazine, 21 Dec. 2023 Other parts of the Southern Hemisphere are also experiencing an exceptionally hot spring, including Australia, which is grappling with unusually high temperatures and dozens of bushfires. Laura Paddison, CNN, 25 Sep. 2023 As the northeast battles floods, Australia’s southeast, in contrast, is on bushfire alert with temperatures expected to top 104 degrees on Tuesday in some Sydney suburbs. Reuters, NBC News, 18 Dec. 2023 Where to Stay: Two years after it was razed in the island’s bushfires, the luxurious Southern Ocean Lodge on Kangaroo Island just reopened this month. Patricia Doherty, Travel + Leisure, 6 Dec. 2023 Beyond the rail line in both directions, the land was a vast expanse of harsh scrub often pitted with the black scars of bushfires—only a few small villages of subsistence farmers broke the monotony. Caitlin Morton, Condé Nast Traveler, 24 Oct. 2023 Another notable stay can be found on Kangaroo Island, where the famed Southern Ocean Lodge is slated to reopen in December after the disastrous bushfires of 2020. Travel + Leisure Editors, Travel + Leisure, 16 Nov. 2023

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'bushfire.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1832, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of bushfire was in 1832

Dictionary Entries Near bushfire

Cite this Entry

“Bushfire.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/bushfire. Accessed 25 Apr. 2024.

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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