fireball
Americannoun
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fireballs
plural
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a ball of fire, as the sun; a shooting star.
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a luminous meteor, sometimes exploding.
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lightning having the appearance of a globe of fire; ball lightning.
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the highly luminous central portion of a nuclear explosion.
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a ball filled with explosive or combustible material, used as a projectile to injure the enemy by explosion or to set fire to their works.
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Informal. an exceptionally energetic or ambitious person.
noun
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a ball-shaped discharge of lightning
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the bright spherical region of hot ionized gas at the centre of a nuclear explosion
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astronomy another name for bolide
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slang an energetic person
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of fireball
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:
The shower is also famous for its bright "fireball" meteors.
From BBC ● Jul. 17, 2026
As this nuclear fireball grows, it mixes with the surrounding atmosphere, cools, and eventually condenses into tiny solid particles that become nuclear fallout.
From Science Daily ● Jun. 3, 2026
It was undergoing a ground test in Cape Canaveral, Florida in preparation of an upcoming flight when it blew up in a massive fireball, sending shockwaves throughout the space industry.
From Barron's ● May 29, 2026
Footage from the scene shows a fireball at the refinery, with thick smoke billowing out across the city.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 28, 2026
If Mother’s thoughts could have taken form, they would have looked like a big fireball falling out of the sky, aimed straight at the She Elephant.
From "The Ear, the Eye, and the Arm" by Nancy Farmer
A ban on "hulla parties" -- groups deployed to drive elephants away using "fireballs" and burning stakes -- is required, it said.
From Barron's ● Aug. 21, 2026
Larger incoming objects, such as boulder sized rocks that create especially bright flashes, are known as bolides or fireballs.
From Science Daily ● May 14, 2026
Distinctive features of the Lyrids are their colours and brightness, along with exceptionally bright fireballs from time to time, outshining the planet Venus.
From BBC ● Apr. 15, 2026
Video images of the fireballs circled the globe.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 20, 2026
One of them had surged into the sky before erupting into spectacular fireballs with the capsule still attached.
From "Hidden Figures" by Margot Lee Shetterly
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