brushfire

1 of 2

adjective

brush·​fire ˈbrəsh-ˌfī(-ə)r 

: 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

Noun

Among the changes, the department has expanded its use of drones to monitor large brush fires, allowing crews to better detect lingering heat or embers that could reignite. —Teresa Liu, Daily News, 13 Jan. 2026

Officials said that the slide occurred in the same spot where a brush fire had broken out in November. —Dean Fioresi, CBS News, 12 Jan. 2026

Moore also said that the department’s handling of the Lachman Fire — a small New Year’s Day 2025 brush fire that ignited in the Pacific Palisades, eventually leading to the Palisades Fire — wasn't good enough, KNBC added. —Greg Norman-Diamond, FOXNews.com, 7 Jan. 2026

In October, federal investigators announced the Palisades fire appeared to explode from a small brush fire still smoldering from a week prior. —Melissa Gomez, Los Angeles Times, 7 Jan. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

Adjective

1954, in the meaning defined above

Noun

1850, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for brushfire

• admire
• afire
• aspire
• backfire
• esquire
• expire
• haywire
• hellfire
• inquire
• inspire
• newswire
• perspire