fire tornado

American  

[fahyuhr tawr-ney-doh] / ˈfaɪər tɔrˌneɪ doʊ /

noun

Meteorology.

fire tornadoes, plural fire tornados plural

1. a flaming tornado generated by intense wildfire, rarer, much larger, and more destructive than a fire whirl.

   It may have begun from the ground as a fire whirl, but it now raged with a cloud-to-ground ferocity that could only belong to an actual fire tornado.

---

Other Word Forms

Inflected Forms

noun

• fire tornados
  plural
• fire tornadoes
  plural

Etymology

Origin of fire tornado

First recorded in 1845–50

Example Sentences

Driving south along the coast, they made their way to the east side of the island, watching as flames leapt across the landscape in what looked like a "fire tornado," she said.

From Salon • Aug. 15, 2023

In July, that fire got out of control, destroyed 23 buildings and spawned a fire tornado near Markleeville, a tiny unincorporated town.

From New York Times • Jan. 3, 2022

On Sunday, the National Weather Service tweeted a video of a fire tornado, or "fire whirl," from San Diego County's 1,500-acre Chaparral Fire.

From Fox News • Aug. 30, 2021

On July 18, a day of especially extreme fire activity, the blaze spawned a fire tornado in the Fremont-Winema National Forest, scientists say.

From Seattle Times • Jul. 27, 2021

The wizards are too busy fleeing the fire tornado to pay us any mind.

From "The Manifestor Prophecy" by Angie Thomas