ablaze

adjective

ə-ˈblāz 

1

: being on fire

—not used before a noun

The house was ablaze.

2

a

: radiant with light or emotion

—not used before a noun

The sky was ablaze with color.

Her eyes were ablaze with anger.

b

: being in a state of great excitement or energy

—not used before a noun

Social media was ablaze with the news.

ablaze adverb

Lightning set the forest ablaze.

The news set the Internet ablaze.

Synonyms of ablaze

• burning
• blazing
• flaming
• aflame
• flickering

Examples of ablaze in a Sentence

the entire block was ablaze by the time firefighters arrived

that night the ballroom, ablaze with light, looked very different from the curtained room it usually was by day

Recent Examples on the Web

At the scene, officers found an RV trailer on fire, which police said the suspect had set ablaze. — Haley Parsley, Sacbee.com, 13 Sep. 2026

Meanwhile, a wave of Houthi attacks on Tuesday set Saudi oil sites ablaze and wounded dozens of people. — Frank Andrews, CBS News, 9 Sep. 2026

Security forces opened fire on demonstrators, killing dozens, while government buildings and politicians’ homes were set ablaze. — ABC News, 7 Sep. 2026

One night, one of the group’s houses is set ablaze, and their friend Evert (Edwin Jonker) is killed. — David Faris, TheWeek, 3 Sep. 2026

Word History

Etymology

a- entry 1 + blaze entry 1

First Known Use

circa 1676, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing ablaze

• set something afire/aflame/ablaze

Rhymes for ablaze

• airways
• allays
• always
• amaze
• anglaise
• appraise
• archways
• arrays
• ashtrays
• assays
• atpase
• ballets

Kids Definition

ablaze

adjective

ə-ˈblāz 

1

: being on fire

2

: radiant with light or bright color