fire
Definitions
Flames, heat, and light produced by burning
火，火焰
An occurrence of something burning destructively
火灾
To shoot a gun or other weapon
开火，射击
To dismiss someone from their job
解雇，开除
Root Breakdown
Root-derivedA single native Old English word (fȳr), not built from parts. The one image of burning fans out into three uses: the literal blaze; 'to fire' = to shoot (early guns fired by igniting powder); and 'to fire' = to dismiss (discharging a worker like discharging a gun).
Root fire still carries 7 more wordsWhy It Means This
Why does one short word mean fire, shoot, and dismiss? Fire was humanity's oldest tool, so its word soaked up everything fire did. When guns arrived, you made them work by setting fire to powder — so 'fire!' became 'shoot!' And 'fire someone' likely borrows the same gun image: to discharge a person the way you discharge a weapon, or simply to throw them out as if into the flames.
Usage Guide
- on fire = burning (the house is on fire); also figurative: she's on fire today = performing brilliantly.
- catch fire / set fire to = start burning.
- fire (a gun): 'fire at the target' (aim) vs 'fire a shot' (the act).
- fire (dismiss): informal; the neutral/formal word is dismiss or let go ('we had to let him go').
- under fire = being shot at, or figuratively, being heavily criticized.
Example Sentences
- 1.
Firefighters battled the forest fire for three days.
- 2.
They lit a fire to keep warm through the cold night.
- 3.
The soldiers were ordered to fire at the approaching tanks.
- 4.
The company fired three managers after the scandal broke.
- 5.
Be careful — the curtains could easily catch fire.
Easily Confused
fire vs flame — fire is the whole event of burning (light a fire, a house fire); a flame is a single visible tongue of burning gas (a candle flame, flames leapt up). You light a fire; the flames are what you see dancing inside it.
Synonym Comparison
- fire (dismiss) — informal, abrupt: you're fired.
- dismiss — neutral/formal, the standard term in writing.
- let go — gentle euphemism, softens the blow.
- lay off — for economic reasons, no fault of the worker.
- sack — British informal equivalent of fire.