Word: fireball Part of Speech: noun Etymology: The noun is derived from fire (noun) + ball (noun). The adjective and verb are derived from the noun. Pronunciation: /ˈfaɪəbɔːl/, /ˈfaɪəɹˌbɔl/, /-ɑl/ 1. A ball of fire, especially one associated with an explosion, or (fiction, mythology) thrown as a weapon. Example: He placed his arms in a blocking position, but even so, the fireball threw all three of them, Kylie, Percival, and Kelly, onto the wall. Example: At 7:45 p.m. there was a sudden “whooshing” noise, and a mercilessly intense fireball exploded from under the escalator, ballooned up into the ticket hall and ignited all combustible material in the area. As a result of the flashover of the fireball, the temperature rose by several hundred degrees in a matter of seconds, and it was believed that it reached 600°C with zero visibility. 2. A feisty, strong-willed person. Labels: figuratively, informal Example: But ſure in a family it bodeth moſt bad, vvhen tvvo firebals (huſbands and vvives anger) come both together. Example: Her folks have a lot of money. I've never seen her, but she must be quite a fireball. 3. Synonym of fastball (“a high-speed pitch of a baseball”). Labels: figuratively 4. A bright glow caused by a spacecraft re-entering an atmosphere. 5. A meteor bright enough to cast shadows; a bolide. Example: [page 1] There ſeem to be three concentric ſtrata of our incumbent atmoſphere; in vvhich, or betvveen them, are produced four kinds of meteors; lightning, ſhooting ſtars, fire-balls, and northern lights. […] [page 2] Dr. [Charles] Blagden has related the hiſtory of another large meteor, or fire-ball, vvhich vvas ſeen the 18th of Auguſt, 1783, vvith many ingenious obſervations and conjectures. Example: In December 1997, a fireball passed eastward before dawn over the southwestern corner of Greenland, and then blew up into at least four fragments. Just five days later, according to reports from Colombia, three fireballs struck Bogotá, one of them causing the death of four children by setting their home ablaze. 6. A class of sailing dinghy with a single trapeze and a symmetrical spinnaker, sailed by a crew of two. 7. A bag or ball filled with combustible material which is thrown as a weapon or to set something alight. Labels: historical Example: [T]he ſlingers and archers together, vvith others alſo tumbling dovvne huge ſtones, vvith firebrands and fireballs, ſet them further off. 8. A bag or ball filled with combustible material which is thrown as a weapon or to set something alight. Labels: historical 9. An emanation of St. Elmo's fire; also (later), of ball lightning. Labels: obsolete Example: [T]here vvas ſuch a Tempeſt & thunder vvith great firebals of lightning, that the vault of the church brake, and halfe the Chancell vvas carried avvay. Example: It is an obſervation of Seamen, That if a ſingle meteor or fireball falls on their maſt, it portends ill luck; but if tvvo come together (vvhich they count Caſtor and Pollux) they preſage good ſucceſſe: […] 10. A ball-shaped firelighter (“small block of a flammable substance, typically a combination of sawdust and wax, used to light fires”). Labels: obsolete 11. A ball of heat-resistant material placed in a fire to slow down the burning of the fuel. Labels: obsolete 12. A statement intended to cause dissension or as a provocation. Labels: figuratively, obsolete