fireball
Americannoun
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a ball of fire, as the sun; a shooting star.
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a luminous meteor, sometimes exploding.
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lightning having the appearance of a globe of fire; ball lightning.
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the highly luminous central portion of a nuclear explosion.
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a ball filled with explosive or combustible material, used as a projectile to injure the enemy by explosion or to set fire to their works.
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Informal. an exceptionally energetic or ambitious person.
noun
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a ball-shaped discharge of lightning
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the bright spherical region of hot ionized gas at the centre of a nuclear explosion
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astronomy another name for bolide
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slang an energetic person
Etymology
Origin of fireball
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Moments later, a bright yellow fireball erupts on the sports hall.
From BBC • Mar. 27, 2026
In the early hours of February 19, 2025, the upper stage of a Falcon 9 rocket was tumbling back to Earth when it exploded into a fireball that made headlines from the UK to Poland.
From Barron's • Feb. 19, 2026
If things get spicy, there’s always Abbey Murphy, the Minnesota scorer and fireball who will mix it up with anyone, including a goalie.
From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 17, 2026
When they do reach lower altitudes, the result is typically a spectacular fireball, sometimes followed by tiny meteorites scattered across the ground.
From Science Daily • Oct. 9, 2025
In the early morning hours of June 30, 1908, in Central Siberia, a giant fireball was seen moving rapidly across the sky.
From "Cosmos" by Carl Sagan
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
