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You've read about funeral pyres, and you may even have survived a pyromaniac ("insane fire-starting") stage in your youth, so you might have guessed that pyr means "fire" in Greek. Pyrotechnic refers literally to fireworks, but always seems to be used for something else—something just as exciting, explosive, dazzling, sparkling, or brilliant. The performances of sports stars and dancers are often described as pyrotechnic, and a critic may describe the pyrotechnics of a rock guitarist's licks or a film's camerawork. A pyrotechnic performance is always impressive, but the word occasionally suggests something more like "flashy" or "flamboyant".
Examples of pyrotechnic in a Sentence
CBS News, 31 Dec. 2025
That snare sound is as instantly identifiable as Miles Davis’s muted horn or Eddie Van Halen’s pyrotechnic neck tapping.
—John Lingan, Rolling Stone, 8 Nov. 2025
Christina Diaz, The Orlando Sentinel, 9 Jan. 2026
His super-sized action hero persona dazzled Californians like the pyrotechnics in one of his Hollywood blockbusters.
—Mark Z. Barabak, Mercury News, 7 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for pyrotechnic
Cite this Entry
“Pyrotechnic.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/pyrotechnic. Accessed 15 Jan. 2026.
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