bushfire

American

[boosh-fahy^uhr] / ˈbʊʃˌfaɪər /

noun

an uncontrolled fire in the trees and bushes of scrubland.

bushfire British

/ ˈbʊʃˌfaɪə /

noun

an uncontrolled fire in the bush; a scrub or forest fire

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of bushfire

First recorded in 1865–70; bush ¹ + fire

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.

See Examples For:

bushfire

"Even a simple 10 metres can dramatically increase the building's chance of survival," David Peterson, an expert in managing bushfire risk, told AFP.

From Barron's ● Aug. 3, 2026

Police said one person had died in a bushfire near the town of Longwood, about two hours' drive north of state capital Melbourne.

From Barron's ● Jan. 11, 2026

Temperatures are forecast to soar past 40C in parts of the region, creating some of the most dangerous bushfire weather since the "Black Summer" blazes of 2019-2020.

From Barron's ● Jan. 8, 2026

"Prepare now and enact your bushfire survival plan. If you are in an area of forecast catastrophic fire danger, leave early to an area with a lower fire risk."

From BBC ● Jan. 7, 2026

The schools were an ever-spreading network from the south stretching northward, on our heels like a bushfire.

From "The Marrow Thieves" by Cherie Dimaline

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023