1
as in infernos
a destructive burning
a number of suspicious fires in the neighborhood recently
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
2
as in ordeals
a test of faith, patience, or strength
asked to be sent to the front lines, as he was eager to prove himself in the fire of battle
Synonyms & Similar Words
1
as in shoots
to cause (a projectile) to be driven forward with force
police officers firing rubber bullets
Synonyms & Similar Words
2
3
as in stimulates
to give life, vigor, or spirit to
a school outing to the natural history museum fired his imagination, and he grew up to become an eminent paleontologist
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
4
as in sacks
to let go from office, service, or employment
fired the secretary for incompetence
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
5
as in throws
to send through the air especially with a quick forward motion of the arm
fired a pass to the running back
Synonyms & Similar Words
6
as in burns
to set (something) on fire
lit some kindling before attempting to fire the logs
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
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Recent Examples of fires
Colson Thayer, PEOPLE, 30 Oct. 2025
According to the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA), between 2018 and 2022, an average of 835 home fires started with decorations, with a third traced back to candles.
—Amanda Greenwood, MSNBC Newsweek, 30 Oct. 2025
The fires claimed 102 lives, displaced over 13,000 others and burned more than 3,000 homes, destroying centuries of cultural history and devastating the economy of an entire region, with losses estimated at nearly $13 billion.
—Josh Green, Time, 30 Oct. 2025
Earthquakes' sudden, rapid shaking can cause fires, tsunamis, landslides or avalanches.
—Ca Earthquake Bot, Sacbee.com, 30 Oct. 2025
In Camden, New Jersey, Mischief Night in 1991 meant fires all over the city, just across the Benjamin Franklin Bridge from Philadelphia.
—Phaedra Trethan, USA Today, 30 Oct. 2025
Qing Yuan had seen many of these tiny corpses, pinkish, yellowish, tin-gray, curled up, always seemingly asleep, tossed by janitors into fires outside the building.
—Literary Hub, 23 Oct. 2025
Long-range capability These enhanced capabilities are critical to the successful execution of fires in support of combined Joint All-Domain Operations.
—Prabhat Ranjan Mishra, Interesting Engineering, 15 Oct. 2025
As the demonstrators blocked busy roads, about 25 people were detained by police for setting fires on Brussels’ populated boulevards, according to Reuters.
—Ashley J. Dimella, FOXNews.com, 15 Oct. 2025
Atharva Gosavi, Interesting Engineering, 30 Oct. 2025
Oh, and if Indiana fires him without cause, Cignetti would be due 100% of his remaining salary.
—Jacob Feldman, Sportico.com, 29 Oct. 2025
When Gonzalez's battalion fires the GBIs at the missile, there's a brief sense of optimism.
—Allison Degrushe, Entertainment Weekly, 27 Oct. 2025
Their range is not much greater than the drones Ukraine currently fires nightly deep into Russia.
—Nick Paton Walsh, CNN Money, 18 Oct. 2025
The driver’s side passenger then fires shots from a pistol at Bass-Moody, fatally striking her in the neck, according to police.
—Nate Gartrell, Mercury News, 15 Oct. 2025
When one of the Dark Hearts is about to shoot at Lizzie, Grasso fires the gun right next to her ear, which causes her world to go silent.
—Leia Mendoza, Variety, 13 Oct. 2025
Wilks points the gun at the officer and the officer fires several shots.
—Drake Bentley, jsonline.com, 13 Oct. 2025
In The Simpsons’ World Cup episode, Homer is asked to referee a match after FIFA fires officials who had been bribed to call matches unfairly.
—Zoe Kaplan, PEOPLE, 11 Oct. 2025
Noun
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) allows travelers to bring laptops on flights, but they must be stored in carry-on baggage only because fires are much harder to fight in cargo storage.
—Colson Thayer, PEOPLE, 30 Oct. 2025
According to the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA), between 2018 and 2022, an average of 835 home fires started with decorations, with a third traced back to candles.
—Amanda Greenwood, MSNBC Newsweek, 30 Oct. 2025
The fires claimed 102 lives, displaced over 13,000 others and burned more than 3,000 homes, destroying centuries of cultural history and devastating the economy of an entire region, with losses estimated at nearly $13 billion.
—Josh Green, Time, 30 Oct. 2025
Earthquakes' sudden, rapid shaking can cause fires, tsunamis, landslides or avalanches.
—Ca Earthquake Bot, Sacbee.com, 30 Oct. 2025
In Camden, New Jersey, Mischief Night in 1991 meant fires all over the city, just across the Benjamin Franklin Bridge from Philadelphia.
—Phaedra Trethan, USA Today, 30 Oct. 2025
Qing Yuan had seen many of these tiny corpses, pinkish, yellowish, tin-gray, curled up, always seemingly asleep, tossed by janitors into fires outside the building.
—Literary Hub, 23 Oct. 2025
Long-range capability These enhanced capabilities are critical to the successful execution of fires in support of combined Joint All-Domain Operations.
—Prabhat Ranjan Mishra, Interesting Engineering, 15 Oct. 2025
As the demonstrators blocked busy roads, about 25 people were detained by police for setting fires on Brussels’ populated boulevards, according to Reuters.
—Ashley J. Dimella, FOXNews.com, 15 Oct. 2025
Verb
The cartridge fires a 40-grain bullet at approximately 1,260 feet per second.
—Atharva Gosavi, Interesting Engineering, 30 Oct. 2025
Oh, and if Indiana fires him without cause, Cignetti would be due 100% of his remaining salary.
—Jacob Feldman, Sportico.com, 29 Oct. 2025
When Gonzalez's battalion fires the GBIs at the missile, there's a brief sense of optimism.
—Allison Degrushe, Entertainment Weekly, 27 Oct. 2025
Their range is not much greater than the drones Ukraine currently fires nightly deep into Russia.
—Nick Paton Walsh, CNN Money, 18 Oct. 2025
The driver’s side passenger then fires shots from a pistol at Bass-Moody, fatally striking her in the neck, according to police.
—Nate Gartrell, Mercury News, 15 Oct. 2025
When one of the Dark Hearts is about to shoot at Lizzie, Grasso fires the gun right next to her ear, which causes her world to go silent.
—Leia Mendoza, Variety, 13 Oct. 2025
Wilks points the gun at the officer and the officer fires several shots.
—Drake Bentley, jsonline.com, 13 Oct. 2025
In The Simpsons’ World Cup episode, Homer is asked to referee a match after FIFA fires officials who had been bribed to call matches unfairly.
—Zoe Kaplan, PEOPLE, 11 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for fires
Noun
-
In today’s housing market, even the lucky ones often face exhausting ordeals and need to stretch their budgets to land a home.—
Samantha Delouya,
CNN Money,
21 Oct. 2025
-
Kruse and Fialko invested seven figures into rebuilding Priscilla’s brand, stabilizing her finances, settling her lawsuits, cleaning up numerous private family ordeals, and attempting to help Priscilla repair her relationship with her daughter.—
Michaela Zee,
Variety,
13 Aug. 2025
Verb
-
An elderly man sits on the floor, dozens of bodies lying around him, before a Sudanese rebel fighter approaches and shoots him.—
Ivana Kottasová,
CNN Money,
30 Oct. 2025
-
The curve shoots upward like a fever.—
Big Think,
Big Think,
30 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
Vilgefortz, true to form, begins by leading a squadron that blasts magic so aggressively at the fortress that some of them crumble into bones on the spot.—
Scott Meslow,
Vulture,
30 Oct. 2025
-
This is an experience for people who think chasing demon sharks on surfboards is rad, and whose not-so-guilty pleasures include using a bad guy’s head like a soccer ball while EDM blasts in the background.—
Christopher Cruz,
Rolling Stone,
20 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
Mercury entering Sagittarius today stimulates your creative faculties.—
USA TODAY,
USA Today,
29 Oct. 2025
-
The low-level, external electrical charge stimulates the body’s internal repair mechanism.—
Scott Lafee,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
28 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
Ohio State sacks Altmyer five times, wins its 10th straight in the series and covers the spread.—
Manny Navarro,
New York Times,
9 Oct. 2025
-
Felix Anudike-Uzomah #97 of the Kansas City Chiefs sacks Bo Nix #10 of the Denver Broncos during the fourth quarter at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium on November 10, 2024 in Kansas City, Missouri.—
Michael Gallagher,
MSNBC Newsweek,
18 Aug. 2025
Verb
-
Some short, quick throws might’ve been effective.—
Kansas City Star,
Kansas City Star,
3 Nov. 2025
-
The pilot episode of I Love LA captures the distance dynamic perfectly; when a character visiting from New York proposes a last-minute trip to the beach (starting from Silver Lake on the East side), one friend within the group throws his hands up with a hard no.—
Rachel Brodsky,
Rolling Stone,
3 Nov. 2025
Verb
-
Sometimes lightning hits the mountainside and splits or burns a tree.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
3 Nov. 2025
-
The cheapest, most efficient way to produce consistent heat has long been with fossil fuels; nothing burns as slow and hot as coal or natural gas.—
IEEE Spectrum,
IEEE Spectrum,
30 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
British fire crews have been hampered by the presence of unexploded bombs when dealing with wildfires sparked during military training sessions.—
Rafil Kroll-Zaidi,
Harpers Magazine,
29 Oct. 2025
-
She’s written loads for a sophomore album, inspired by her family’s experience evacuating their Palisades neighborhood as wildfires swept through Los Angeles in January.—
Angelique Jackson,
Variety,
29 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Fires.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/fires. Accessed 6 Nov. 2025.
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