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.

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Other Word Forms

• pyromaniacal
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of pyromaniac

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

Explanation

Someone who loves to set fires — and, for whatever reason, can't stop setting them — is a pyromaniac. Maniac is a word attached to many words for mental illness, but this has to be one of the most scary. A pyromaniac has a frequent, powerful desire to set fires. This is different from an arsonist, who sets fires for money. Pyromaniacs just set fires because they want to and feel a compulsion to. Pyromania is a sickness. A pyromaniac could also be someone who loves watching fires.

Example Sentences

Say what you will about Arthur Burns, but he had enough common sense not to give a pyromaniac a blowtorch.

From Slate • Sep. 5, 2025

“He’s the pyromaniac, but you gave him kindling,” Chris, the journalist, tells the others.

From New York Times • Apr. 27, 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