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foxfire

or fox-fire

[foks-fahyuh r]
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noun Chiefly Midland and Southern U.S.
  1. organic luminescence, especially from certain fungi on decaying wood.
  2. any of various fungi causing luminescence in decaying wood.
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Origin of foxfire

late Middle English word dating back to 1425–75; see origin at fox, fire
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for fox-fire

Historical Examples

  • But for the fox-fire beacons he would have been lost instantly.

    The Forgotten Planet

    Murray Leinster

  • If it had anywhere an actual nucleus, that centre remained as impalpable and unmaterial as fox-fire.

    The Roof Tree

    Charles Neville Buck

  • The country people are familiar with the sight of it in wild timber-land, and have given it the name of 'Fox-fire.'

    The Guardian Angel

    Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr.

  • Are there passages which burn with real fire—not punk, fox-fire, make believe?

  • They were man-size, too, or nearly so, visible in the dark with the dim radiance of fox-fire.

    The Golgotha Dancers

    Manly Wade Wellman

British Dictionary definitions for fox-fire

foxfire

noun
  1. a luminescent glow emitted by certain fungi on rotting woodSee also bioluminescence
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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

Word Origin and History for fox-fire

n.

also foxfire, late 15c., from fox (n.) + fire (n.).

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper