wildfire

noun

wild·​fire ˈwī(-ə)ld-ˌfī(-ə)r 

1

: a sweeping and destructive conflagration especially in a wilderness or a rural area

2

: greek fire

3

: a phosphorescent glow (such as ignis fatuus or fox fire)

4

: a destructive leaf-spot disease of tobacco caused by several strains of a bacterium (Pseudomonas syringae)

Phrases

like wildfire

: very rapidly

the news spread like wildfire

Examples of wildfire in a Sentence

The recent wildfires were made worse by the strong winds.

Recent Examples on the Web

Containment is part of a larger plan for managing a wildfire. —Ca Wildfire Bot, Sacbee.com, 21 July 2025

Canadian wildfire smoke has already moved into northwest Wisconsin and the Upper Peninsula of Michigan this weekend. —Hope Karnopp, jsonline.com, 21 July 2025

Two wildfires in northern Arizona have burned over 70,000 acres, as of July 20, 2025. —Rey Covarrubias Jr, AZCentral.com, 20 July 2025

Fossil fuel pollution — alongside other compounding factors — has transformed these months into a time of mounting peril, punctuated by relentless heat waves, rampant wildfires and catastrophic flooding. —Andrew Freedman, CNN Money, 20 July 2025

Word History

First Known Use

12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing wildfire

• spread like wildfire

Rhymes for wildfire

• briar
• brier
• buyer
• choir
• crier
• cryer
• drier
• dryer
• eyer
• flier
• flyer
• friar

Kids Definition

wildfire

noun

wild·​fire ˈwī(ə)l(d)-ˌfī(ə)r 

: an uncontrollable fire that destroys a wide area