ball of fire

noun phrase

: a person of unusual energy, vitality, or drive

Examples of ball of fire in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web Annie Jacobsen So with a 1-megaton bomb on Washington, DC, what happens in the very first millisecond is that this thermonuclear flash expands into a ball of fire that is one mile of pure fire. Sean Illing, Vox, 23 June 2024 The liquid ignited into a large ball of fire, the video showed. Jake Allen, The Indianapolis Star, 30 Apr. 2024 And for a while last week, they were dropped from a helicopter over the forest outside Payson, raining actual balls of fire. Shaun McKinnon, The Arizona Republic, 29 Apr. 2024 Footage on Chinese social media showed a ball of fire spreading to the exterior of the building. Chris Lau, CNN, 24 Feb. 2024 In some houses, when residents lit their stovetop, a ball of fire came out. Adriana Loureiro Fernandez, New York Times, 3 Sep. 2023 Ring doorbell video obtained by CNN affiliate WTAE appears to show one of the homes exploding in a ball of fire, shooting up a thick plume of smoke and scattering debris in the area. Samantha Beech, CNN, 12 Aug. 2023 What happened to that big ball of fire that used to be in the sky? Houston Mitchell, Los Angeles Times, 13 June 2023 It’s been more on fire than it’s been a ball of fire on speed. Mark Inabinett | Minabinett@al.com, al, 11 June 2023

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'ball of fire.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

circa 1900, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of ball of fire was circa 1900

Dictionary Entries Near ball of fire

Cite this Entry

“Ball of fire.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/ball%20of%20fire. Accessed 4 Jul. 2024.

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