fire chief

American

noun

the officer in charge of a municipality's fire department or departments.

Etymology

Origin of fire chief

First recorded in 1885–90

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.

Leipzig fire chief Axel Schuh said 22 people were injured, two seriously.

From BBC • May 4, 2026

Both McDonnell and the new fire chief make far less than Janisse Quiñones, general manager of the Department of Water and Power, who was sworn in at $750,000 a year.

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 24, 2026

Bristol Township fire chief Kevin Dippolito said there was "a heavy odor of gas" when firefighters arrived.

From Barron's • Dec. 24, 2025

She has made some critical comments, and as I mentioned, she replaced the fire chief.

From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 22, 2025

Mrs. Richardson, watching the fire chief meticulously taking notes on his clipboard, had completely forgotten about her former tenants.

From "Little Fires Everywhere" by Celeste Ng

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