pyromaniac

American  

[pahy-ruh-mey-nee-ak] / ˌpaɪ rəˈmeɪ niˌæk /

noun

1. someone with a compulsion to set things on fire.

   One theory is that pyromaniacs simply love fires and the damage they cause, and so they start them.

---

Other Word Forms

• pyromaniacal adjective

Etymology

Origin of pyromaniac

pyromani(a) ( def. ) + -ac ( def. )

Example Sentences

It is unlikely to inspire you to go full pyromaniac like Hendrix, but just in case, you might want to have a fire extinguisher handy.

From New York Times • Jun. 18, 2024

In France, responsibility for all things school falls squarely to the minister of education, Jean-Michel Blanquer, who has been ridiculed as a pompier pyromane—a pyromaniac firefighter, someone who is creating more problems than he solves.

From Slate • Jan. 14, 2022

William F. Buckley once described a friendly intellectual adversary as a pyromaniac in a field of straw men.

From Washington Post • Jan. 8, 2020

Case in point, I kind of stumbled upon the pyromaniac Shark Boshaw while driving by the Moonflower Trailer Park.

From Washington Times • Apr. 6, 2018

They thought I was a pyromaniac and a liar, and the fact that I myself never seemed to get burned was as good as proof.

From "Hollow City" by Ransom Riggs