beacon fire
1
8.3
- noun
- Archaic
:
fuego de señal
- Every night, the lookout would light a beacon fire to guide lost travelers back to safety.
- build a beacon fire
Examples
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with the aid of the reflector lamp now with machines built nine or ten feet high and with powerful spy glasses we can have a real news service information and reports flashing in from parts of Europe and being posted like beacon fires on the bulletin board in the subscribers room
-
I had to build my beacon fires, and that meant gathering wood, and I wasn't carrying much food, so I had to hunt or fish along the way.
Fiction book (1990) -
Every evening I built a big beacon fire in case there was anybody around to see the smoke or the light.
Fiction book (1990) -
I made another beacon fire.
Fiction book (1990) -
On the fourth day, I built another beacon fire, but I never saw even a breath of smoke.
Fiction book (1990) -
I stayed for a while to lay in food, and every night I burned a beacon fire, but I never saw any smoke.
Fiction book (1990) -
I built my first beacon fire since I was captured, but I slept a good ways from it.
Fiction book (1990) -
I built a large beacon fire on the hilltop to signal nearby ships that I needed help.
-
The ancient beacon fire served as a warning to villagers of an impending attack from invaders.
Synonyms
66
4.3
A light or fire on the coast that guides ships and warns of danger
64
1.0
A large outdoor fire people make for a celebration or to burn things
55
4.3
A small object that makes a very bright light to show your location
3
4.2
A fire lit to attract attention and show where people are
1
3.2
A light or fire used to send a message over a distance
A tower with a light that warns ships about rocks and shallow water
A fire kept burning at night to signal people far away
Antonyms
How Visible
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning 'a fire lit as a signal or warning' is directly and compositionally derivable from 'beacon' (a guiding or warning light/structure) + 'fire' (a burning flame), so the compound denotes a fire that functions as a beacon. This straightforward noun–noun composition is cross-linguistically common, so a B1 learner who knows both constituents will readily infer the MWE's meaning.
Etymology
The noun beacon fire comes from the old idea of lighting a bright fire on a high place like a hill or tower to act as a beacon. Because people could see it from far away, it warned others and worked as a 'signal' or 'warning', which is why we use the phrase today.