conflagration

noun

con·​fla·​gra·​tion ˌkän-flə-ˈgrā-shən 

1

: fire

especially : a large disastrous fire

The conflagration destroyed the warehouses.

2

: conflict, war

The conflagration between the two countries lasted for ten years.

Synonyms

• fire
• holocaust
• inferno

Examples of conflagration in a Sentence

The treaty is the latest attempt to resolve the ten-year conflagration.

the historic tavern burned to the ground in a horrible conflagration

Recent Examples on the Web

But in the resulting crash, as flames burst all around and the pilot’s bodies go limp, the camera in the cockpit finds Fielder, standing against the conflagration. —Sarah Shachat, IndieWire, 23 Apr. 2025

While the cause of the Eaton fire — which killed 18 people and destroyed more than 9,000 structures in Altadena — remains under investigation, residents have filed several lawsuits blaming Edison for sparking the conflagration. —Suhauna Hussain, Los Angeles Times, 17 Apr. 2025

In a timely coincidence, the university had launched a new initiative, Dialogue Vanderbilt, months before the Middle East conflagration. —Stephen Humphries, Christian Science Monitor, 10 Apr. 2025

Between the two conflagrations, thirteen thousand dwellings were destroyed, mine among them. —Dana Goodyear, New Yorker, 5 Apr. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Latin conflagration-, conflagratio, from conflagrare — see conflagrant

First Known Use

1600, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for conflagration

• abdication
• aberration
• abjuration
• abnegation
• abrogation
• acceptation
• acclamation
• acclimation
• accusation
• activation
• actuation
• acylation

Kids Definition

conflagration

noun

con·​fla·​gra·​tion ˌkän-flə-ˈgrā-shən 

: a large disastrous fire