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by Liz Walter

Today’s post looks at words connected with fire and burning. As well as looking at words for different types of fire, I’ll cover some common collocations (words that go together) that we use when we talk about fire, several of which would not be possible to guess.

Something that is burning is on fire. We use this phrase when the thing should not be burning. When a fire is deliberate, we often use the word alight, and if something is burning very fiercely, we can say it is ablaze:

I noticed that the shed was on fire.

The fire was still alight.

The entire factory was ablaze.

When something starts to burn, it catches fire. We sometimes say that things catch on fire or catch alight – these mean the same, but are slightly less common:

Some of the dry grass caught fire.

He suffered burns when his clothing caught alight.

More dramatically, if something suddenly starts to burn, we could say that it bursts into flames or goes up in flames:

The car struck a tree and burst into flames.

She watched helplessly as her home went up in flames.

If you make something burn, you set fire to it, set it on fire, or set light to it. We can also say that we set something alight or use the verb light. In more technical contexts, we might use the verb ignite:

I accidentally set fire to the curtains.

Rioters set light to several police cars.

He poured brandy on the pudding and set it alight.

She lit a cigarette.

The fuel is ignited to provide power to the machine.

When a fire starts, especially unexpectedly, we often say it breaks out. If it spreads quickly, we might say that it sweeps through a building or area, and if it burns very fiercely, it rages:

Fire broke out in an old warehouse.

The fire swept through the apartment block.

High winds kept the fires raging for days.

If someone stops a fire from burning, they put it out, or – more formally – extinguish it. The glowing remains of a fire are called embers:

We used a blanket to put the fire out.

Firefighters managed to extinguish the fire.

They cooked the fish on the embers of the fire.

A fire that spreads through an area of countryside is known as a wildfire, while a fire you build in order to burn things you don’t want or simply for pleasure is a bonfire:

Wildfires swept through the forests last week.

We made a bonfire with all the dead branches.

In my next post, I will look at how words connected with fire are often used in figurative or idiomatic ways.