fire alarm

See more synonyms for fire alarm on Thesaurus.com

noun

a signal that warns that a fire has started.
a bell, buzzer, siren, horn, etc., that provides such a signal.

Origin of fire alarm

An Americanism dating back to 1840–50

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words for fire alarm

siren

Examples from the Web for fire alarm

Historical Examples of fire alarm

In his agitation he gave such a tug at the bell that it clanged like a fire-alarm.
Despair's Last Journey
David Christie Murray
Here, at the first news of fire in the city, is sounded the fire-alarm.
Autumn Impressions of the Gironde
Isabel Giberne Sieveking
Finally he rushed to his big gong and made it clatter like a fire-alarm.
The Emerald City of Oz
L. Frank Baum
What's all this fire-alarm that's been sprung about a new elevator trust?
The Wreckers
Francis Lynde
I guess she'll hear of the fire-alarm, and hurry home: it'll be jest like her.
The Atlantic Monthly, Volume 16, No. 96, October 1865
Various

British Dictionary definitions for fire alarm

fire alarm

noun

a device to give warning of fire, esp a bell, siren, or hooter
a shout to warn that a fire has broken out

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