fireball
Part of speech: noun
adj
verb
Morphological type: compound
Topics: aerospace
astronautics
astronomy
ball-games
baseball
business
engineering
fantasy
fiction
games
government
heraldry
hobbies
lifestyle
literature
media
military
monarchy
natural-sciences
nautical
nobility
physical-sciences
politics
publishing
sailing
science-fiction
sports
tools
transport
war
weaponry
Etymology: The noun is derived from fire (noun) + ball (noun). The adjective and verb are derived from the noun.
Compound parts: fire
ball
Inflected forms:
form: fireballs
pos: noun
tags: plural
form: fireballs
pos: verb
tags: present
singular
third-person
form: fireballing
pos: verb
tags: participle
present
form: fireballed
pos: verb
tags: participle
past
form: fireballed
pos: verb
tags: past
Senses:
gloss: A ball of fire, especially one associated with an explosion, or (fiction, mythology) thrown as a weapon.
pos: noun
examples: 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.
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.
In a moment, he was caught by the blast. He threw up his arms to cover his head as the surge of energy created by the fireball threw him aside.
At the time of this photo, Royal Marine Gunner Bryan Gasson is pretty much dead centre in this photo, and yes, that means he is literally inside that socking great fireball as the magazines detonate.
As Elon Musk returns his focus to his businesses, one of his most important companies just had another setback: A SpaceX Starship rocket exploded in an immense fireball Wednesday during a routine ground test.
gloss: A feisty, strong-willed person.
pos: noun
tags: figuratively
informal
examples: But ſure in a family it bodeth moſt bad, vvhen tvvo firebals (huſbands and vvives anger) come both together.
Her folks have a lot of money. I've never seen her, but she must be quite a fireball.
And Lydia's a sassy little fireball. Today's her first day of first grade, and I'm just glad her teacher hasn't had to call.
gloss: Synonym of fastball (“a high-speed pitch of a baseball”).
pos: noun
tags: figuratively
gloss: A bright glow caused by a spacecraft re-entering an atmosphere.
pos: noun
gloss: A meteor bright enough to cast shadows; a bolide.
pos: noun
examples: [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.
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.
Ninety-four years after the Tunguska fireball. […] A US Air Force spots an object as it enters the atmosphere, but loses track of it as it falls below 30 kilometres. Moments later a second satellite records a fireball exploding in the clouded sky.
gloss: A class of sailing dinghy with a single trapeze and a symmetrical spinnaker, sailed by a crew of two.
pos: noun
gloss: A bag or ball filled with combustible material which is thrown as a weapon or to set something alight.
pos: noun
tags: historical
examples: [T]he ſlingers and archers together, vvith others alſo tumbling dovvne huge ſtones, vvith firebrands and fireballs, ſet them further off.
gloss: A bag or ball filled with combustible material which is thrown as a weapon or to set something alight.
pos: noun
tags: historical
gloss: An emanation of St. Elmo's fire; also (later), of ball lightning.
pos: noun
tags: obsolete
examples: [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.
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: […]
gloss: A ball-shaped firelighter (“small block of a flammable substance, typically a combination of sawdust and wax, used to light fires”).
pos: noun
tags: obsolete
gloss: A ball of heat-resistant material placed in a fire to slow down the burning of the fuel.
pos: noun
tags: obsolete
gloss: A statement intended to cause dissension or as a provocation.
pos: noun
tags: figuratively
obsolete
gloss: Excellent, terrific.
pos: adj
tags: not-comparable
slang
examples: "Give us a hand," said Mack. "How's she look?" / "Fireball," said Eddie.
gloss: To attack (someone or something) with balls of fire.
pos: verb
tags: transitive
gloss: To explode in a ball of fire or flame.
pos: verb
tags: intransitive
examples: The car swerved off a road, hit a wall, and fireballed as the petrol tank exploded.
On Feb. 24, [Yaroslava] Mahuchikh (pronounced ma-GU–chi-huh or ma-HU-chick) was startled awake by shuddering booms in Dnipro, her hometown, in east-central Ukraine. Russia had begun its invasion. An explosion, caught on video, fireballed into the dark sky. Dnipro's airport and area military facilities had come under attack.
gloss: To emerge suddenly; to explode.
pos: verb
tags: figuratively
intransitive
examples: But the swoon was only brief. [Klay] Thompson scorched his way to 27 first-half points, the Warriors fireballed back into a 17-point lead and a statement half was sealed from the deeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeep left corner, early in the clock and without a dribble – vintage Klay, vintage Warriors.
gloss: To pitch a baseball very fast.
pos: verb
tags: intransitive
Related words: ball of fire
Derived words: Earth-grazing fireball
fireballer
fireballing
Translations:
lang: Finnish
word: tulipallo