brushfire

1 of 2

adjective

brush·​fire ˈbrəsh-ˌfī(-ə)r How to pronounce brushfire (audio)
: involving mobilization only on a small and local scale
brushfire border wars

brush fire

2 of 2

noun

1
: a fire involving low-growing plants (such as scrub and brush)
2
: a minor conflict or crisis
putting out political brush fires

Examples of brushfire in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
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Noun
Smoke from two uncontained brush fires in the Florida Everglades, including the 1,600-acre Mile Marker 39 blaze, is drifting eastward into Fort Lauderdale and western Broward County, prompting visibility warnings for morning drivers and residents. Amanda Castro, MSNBC Newsweek, 20 Aug. 2025 Ceriello also helped train firefighters who battled drought conditions and a massive brush fire last year that destroyed about 4 acres of Manhattan’s Inwood Hill Park. Leonard Greene, New York Daily News, 18 Aug. 2025 So far this month, there have been two brush fires reported in Westport and Durham, according to the Wildland Fire Reporting System through the state’s Department of Energy and Environmental Protection. Stephen Underwood, Hartford Courant, 17 Aug. 2025 South Florida is experiencing dry conditions that help start and grow brush fires, forecasters said. Devoun Cetoute, Miami Herald, 15 Aug. 2025 See All Example Sentences for brushfire

Word History

First Known Use

Adjective

1954, in the meaning defined above

Noun

1850, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of brushfire was in 1850

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Cite this Entry

“Brushfire.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/brushfire. Accessed 9 Sep. 2025.

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