catch fire
Idioms-
Be ignited, as in This wood is dry enough to catch fire . [c. 1600] Also see set on fire .
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Become inflamed with enthusiasm or passion, as in His ideas caught fire all over the country . [Early 1700s]
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.
All lithium batteries can uncontrollably heat and catch fire through a chemical chain reaction known as thermal runaway.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 6, 2026
According to state news agency TASS, the targeted patrol car was heavily damaged but did not catch fire.
From Barron's • Feb. 23, 2026
The U.S. jobs market took a sharp turn for the worse in 2025, and it doesn’t look like hiring will catch fire in the new year.
From MarketWatch • Dec. 20, 2025
That caused the oil which is used to cool the transformer to catch fire, and took two transformers offline, cutting power to Heathrow.
From BBC • Jul. 2, 2025
There was a blinding crimson flare from the corner of the workshop as the fog began to catch fire, sending up strangely angular tongues of violent red flame.
From "The Name of the Wind" by Patrick Rothfuss
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.
