electric fire
- noun
- /ɪˈlɛktrɪk faɪər/
- UK
:
estufa eléctrica
- The electric fire provided warmth and a cozy atmosphere during the chilly winter evenings.
Examples
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On cold nights, the electric fire made the room feel like a traditional fireplace.
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She turned on the electric fire to create a comfortable environment in her living room.
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He'd rigged up a little electric fire and even slept there at night, on a mattress he'd hauled in from the trailer.
Fiction book (1998)
Synonyms
11
3.1
A small heater that you can move to warm one room
1
2.1
A machine that uses electricity to make a room or small space warm
How Hot
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning 'small space heater that mimics a fireplace' is directly derivable from combining 'electric' (powered by electricity) with 'fire' (a source of heat or fireplace), so a B1 learner who knows both words can reasonably infer it is an electrical heating device resembling a fireplace. This compositional pattern (electric + fire/hearth = electric heater/fireplace) is common cross-linguistically and follows transparent word-formation, making the expression predictable.
Etymology
Electric fire comes from early heaters that used electric power to make a glowing, fire-like light and heat, so people pictured a 'fire' that ran on electricity. That's why today electric fire means 'a small electric heater that looks like a fireplace'.