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Glite Dictionary
barnburner

barnburner

1 9.1
A very exciting event, often a close sports game
  • noun
  • /ˈbɑrnˌbɜrnər/
  • Informal
translation icon : gran espectáculo
  • Keep your eyes up tonight it's gonna be a barnburner.
  • a real barnburner

Examples

  • To the outside observer, the match between Tate and Kedzie was simply a classic barnburner, with the veteran Kedzie at the top of her game and Tate raising her game when pushed to her limits.

    Blog text (1)

  • The real winners of this contest are the local TV networks in battleground states that cleaned up financially and the political consultants and media types who told us what a barnburner we had on our hands.

    Blog text (16)

  • This one's gonna be a barnburner people.

    Never Back Down 2: The Beatdown (2011)

  • Marshall wins in a barnburner, folks!

    We Are Marshall (2006)

  • I didn't catch Deval Patrick's speech last night, but I'm reliably informed that it was a barnburner.

    Blog text (18)

  • "The Big Dawg" will make a barnburner—setting the stage for Obama's speech—which I'm sure will also be a barnburner.

    Blog text (29)

  • "The Big Dawg" will make a barnburner—setting the stage for Obama's speech—which I'm sure will also be a barnburner.

    Blog text (29)

  • The championship game turned out to be a real barnburner, with both teams playing their best.

  • Last night's concert was a barnburner; the crowd was on their feet the entire time.

  • The film received rave reviews for being a barnburner of excitement and action.

Synonyms

bang
vsbarnburner
  • US
77 4.4

An event that is very successful and impressive

is more focused on excitement and thrill rather than success alone
scorcher
vsbarnburner
  • Informal
1 5.1

A show or event that people find very exciting

is used for a very exciting event rather than a regular success
snorter
vsbarnburner
  • UK
1 8.7

A very impressive or surprising thing that people notice

is about broad excitement and impressiveness rather than intensity alone
sizzler
vsbarnburner
1 4.7

A very hot day or a very exciting event

is only about an exceptionally exciting or impressive event, not weather
stormer
vsbarnburner
  • UK
7.1

A performance or event that is very exciting and successful

is similar but leans more toward raw excitement than success

Antonyms

boring
721 1.0

Not interesting and making you feel tired or impatient

dull
182 1.3

Not interesting or lively

How Exciting

barnburner
  • Informal
1 9.1
thriller
97 3.0
game
∞ 1.0
dud
  • Informal
14 4.7

Surface Forms

barnburner singular
barnburners plural

Morphology

barnburner = barn + burner (semi-transparent) = barn + burn + er

The word is transparently built from 'barn' + 'burner' morphologically, but the current sense 'an exciting event' is a figurative extension rather than a literal description.

Etymology

Barnburner brings to mind a barn set on fire — 'to burn' — an extreme, attention‑grabbing image; a helpful way to remember something so wild it feels like it could 'burn the barn down'. So a barnburner is an event that is very exciting or impressive.