firefighter

American  

[fahyuhr-fahy-ter] / ˈfaɪərˌfaɪ tɛr /

Or fire fighter

noun

• firefighters
  plural

1. a person who fights destructive fires.

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firefighter British  

/ ˈfaɪəˌfaɪtə /

noun

1. a person who fights fires, usually a public employee or trained volunteer

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• firefighting
  noun

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• firefighters
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of firefighter

First recorded in 1900–05; fire + fighter

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Explanation

A firefighter is someone whose job involves investigating and putting out accidental blazes. If your gas stove ignites a towel and you can't put out the flames, call the firefighters! The word fireman is older than firefighter, which first appeared in the late 19th century, and for a long time it was much more commonly used. These days, it's more accurate to use firefighter, since men and women both work for fire departments battling fires. Also, the word perfectly describes the job itself, fighting dangerous fires.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

firefighter firefighters

Another firefighter died on Wednesday in South Kalimantan on Indonesia's part of Borneo island.

From Barron's ● Oct. 22, 2026

Fauzi Rahman, another firefighter in Palangkaraya, highlighted this as one of the main difficulties confronting him and his peers.

From BBC ● Oct. 20, 2026

Another firefighter involved in the rescue was briefly evaluated for injuries, the report said.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 12, 2026

Myke Cole, a volunteer firefighter in New York’s Hudson Valley, is a former intelligence and law enforcement officer and the author, most recently, of “Steel Lobsters: Crown, Commonwealth, and the Last Knights in England.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 7, 2026

As one firefighter later put it, “From the beginning of that fatal fire, everything went wrong!”

From "The Great Fire" by Jim Murphy

Teachers, firefighters and other groups oppose Proposition 40 because of concerns about long-term impacts on the state.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 31, 2026

The unions representing sheriff’s deputies, firefighters and other employee groups reported raising $7.7 million through mid-October to campaign in favor of Measure A, according to financial disclosure reports.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 27, 2026

But recent weakness in some corners of the increasingly debt-driven sector have previewed potential pain to pensions—and millions of teachers, firefighters and other workers they support—if growth decelerates or the boom goes bust.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 23, 2026

Five firefighters died in East Java last week after they were overwhelmed by smoke and flames in the Bromo Tengger Semeru National Park.

From Barron's ● Oct. 22, 2026

Peace officers and firefighters, for instance, are only partially defined by their job.

From "Scythe" by Neal Shusterman

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