fire department

American  

noun

• fire departments
  plural

1. the department of a municipal government charged with the prevention and extinguishing of fire.

2. the personnel in such a department.

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fire department British  

noun

1. the department of a local authority responsible for the prevention and extinguishing of fires

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• fire departments
  plural

Etymology

Origin of fire department

An Americanism dating back to 1815–25

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

fire department

Her father, Alan “Skip” Panettiere, worked for New York City’s fire department and was the parent she leaned on for emotional support.

From Salon ● Aug. 19, 2026

“Imagine a hospital where more than half of patients died from routine procedures. A fire department that failed to respond to more than half its calls,” the report said.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 5, 2026

Firefighters have faced dozens of fires daily and Greece's Civil Protection Minister Evangelos Tournas on Saturday said the fire department had been "pushed to its limits".

From Barron's ● Aug. 2, 2026

The San Diego Fire Department was near the scene, responding to a brush fire “next to the plane crash area,” said Candace Hadley, a spokesperson for the fire department.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 31, 2026

In the meantime Mr. Blair and the Sunoco station manager had to get the fire department to break in the door and get Claude out.

From "The Best School Year Ever" by Barbara Robinson