brush fire
5
4.1
- noun
- /brʌʃ faɪər/
- US
:
fuego de maleza
- At Toodle's Market the next day, where he bought groceries, the three brush fires were the chief topic of conversation.
- put out a brush fire
- start a brush fire
- small brush fire
Every single summer there are brush fires that break out.
- Every single summer there are brush fires that break out.
- Well, every low wind fire that we have is just a brush fire and we put it out.
- What if this becomes a little brush fire in Kansas, but then a gigantic fire in Ohio or Alabama?
Examples
-
We haven't needed to use the chopper since that Marin County brush fire, sir.
-
According to multiple local news outlets, a brush fire occurred as a result of an incident that happened near Highway 1 Fishhook last Wednesday morning.
Blog text (3) -
These were required in my house since I live in a brush fire area.
Blog text (23) -
Every single summer there are brush fires that break out.
-
Homer is running with the others to put out a brush fire.
Fiction book (1995) -
The trees were far enough away from the blazing field to remain safe from the brush fire.
Fiction book (1993) -
"Everyone's concerned about the brush fires," she said.
Fiction book (2002) -
Nobody's likely to chase you, as long as you don't start a brush fire or leave too much junk around.
Fiction book (1991) -
On a local level, there are certainly some areas around the state that are quite dry and might have a danger of brush fire, but there's no widespread fire danger in the state right now," he said.
Blog text (3) -
Firefighters quickly extinguished the brush fire that threatened homes near the canyon.
Synonyms
∞
1.0
A burning flame that gives heat and light
4
3.2
A large fire that is out of control in wild areas like forests or grasslands
A fire that burns dry grass and spreads across open land
Antonyms
How Big
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning 'an uncontrolled fire burning low shrubs' is directly and transparently derivable from combining 'brush' (a thicket of low shrubs) with 'fire' (the burning process). This is a straightforward compound noun following regular English composition patterns and has clear parallels in other languages, so a B1 learner who knows both constituents will readily infer the meaning.
Etymology
Brush fire comes from the simple image of dry brush, meaning 'small bushes', catching fire and spreading quickly over open ground. So, the phrase now means 'an uncontrolled fire' that burns bushes and low plants.