as in torches
a person who deliberately and unlawfully sets fire to a building or other property
they finally caught the arsonist, but only after he'd set fire to four barns
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Recent Examples of arsonists
Last month, arsonists set fire to four ambulances belonging to a Jewish charity in Golders Green, north London.
—
Lianne Kolirin, CNN Money, 20 Apr. 2026
A little over six years after being targeted by arsonists during wide-ranging protests in Santiago, Chile, the Violeta Parra Museum has been reopened to the public, the Art Newspaper reports.
—News Desk, Artforum, 6 Apr. 2026
The state of Maryland is burning at the hands of political arsonists, and the Maryland Freedom Caucus continues to criticize the color of the few fire trucks Maryland Republicans are deploying to contain the disaster.
—Torrey Snow, Baltimore Sun, 25 Feb. 2026
In May, arsonists incinerated an 860,000-square-foot megamall in Warsaw; an investigation found the blaze was ordered by the GRU.
—The Week Us, TheWeek, 17 Feb. 2026
The arsonists were never identified.
—Literary Hub, 27 Jan. 2026
Indeed, Knight says the Guinness family claims that the Guinness brewery feared attacks by Fenians and arsonists before Benjamin Guinness’s death.
—Olivia B. Waxman, Time, 25 Sep. 2025
Days later, arsonists returned to burn what was left of Chinatown.
—Beth Lew-Williams, New Yorker, 13 Sep. 2025
Examples of attacks include everything from graffiti and destruction of statues to arsonists destroying entire churches and assailants attacking churchgoers with deadly weapons.
—Robert Schmad, The Washington Examiner, 30 Aug. 2025
Lianne Kolirin, CNN Money, 20 Apr. 2026
A little over six years after being targeted by arsonists during wide-ranging protests in Santiago, Chile, the Violeta Parra Museum has been reopened to the public, the Art Newspaper reports.
—News Desk, Artforum, 6 Apr. 2026
The state of Maryland is burning at the hands of political arsonists, and the Maryland Freedom Caucus continues to criticize the color of the few fire trucks Maryland Republicans are deploying to contain the disaster.
—Torrey Snow, Baltimore Sun, 25 Feb. 2026
In May, arsonists incinerated an 860,000-square-foot megamall in Warsaw; an investigation found the blaze was ordered by the GRU.
—The Week Us, TheWeek, 17 Feb. 2026
The arsonists were never identified.
—Literary Hub, 27 Jan. 2026
Indeed, Knight says the Guinness family claims that the Guinness brewery feared attacks by Fenians and arsonists before Benjamin Guinness’s death.
—Olivia B. Waxman, Time, 25 Sep. 2025
Days later, arsonists returned to burn what was left of Chinatown.
—Beth Lew-Williams, New Yorker, 13 Sep. 2025
Examples of attacks include everything from graffiti and destruction of statues to arsonists destroying entire churches and assailants attacking churchgoers with deadly weapons.
—Robert Schmad, The Washington Examiner, 30 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for arsonists
torches
Noun
-
After nightfall, a line of torches guided me to dinner along the beach.—
Susmita Baral,
Travel + Leisure,
21 Apr. 2026
-
When Raphael died, a hundred torches were carried by painters at his funeral, and he was buried in the rotunda of the Pantheon.—
Zachary Fine,
New Yorker,
20 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Arsonists.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/arsonists. Accessed 29 Apr. 2026.
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