firestorm

noun

fire·​storm ˈfī(-ə)r-ˌstȯrm 

1

: a very intense and destructive fire usually accompanied by high winds

The Rooses' house and gardens were obliterated in the 1991 Oakland firestorm.

—Craig Summers Black

especially : one that is started by attack with nuclear or incendiary weapons and that creates a powerful updraft which causes very strong inrushing winds to develop in the surrounding area

His goal was to create firestorms like the ones that had consumed Hamburg and Dresden, conflagrations so vast and intense that nothing could survive them …

—David M. Kennedy

2

a

: a sudden or violent outburst

a firestorm of public protest

b

: a raging controversy

a political firestorm

Synonyms

• contestation
• controversy
• debate
• difference
• difficulty
• disagreement
• disputation
• dispute
• dissension
• dissention
• dissensus
• nonconcurrence

Examples of firestorm in a Sentence

The bombing left the city engulfed in a firestorm.

His proposal set off a political firestorm.

a firestorm of public protest

Recent Examples on the Web

Trump sought to distance himself from the comedian, but the firestorm continued. —Jared Gans, The Hill, 5 Nov. 2024

Following the media firestorm, Trump’s campaign distanced itself from the joke. —Ethan Shanfeld, Variety, 30 Oct. 2024

Fact and Fiction in Gladiator II: Those Who Are About to Lie Salute You Logo text Remember when Ridley Scott’s 2023 biopic Napoleon set off a firestorm among finicky French historians? —Benjamin Svetkey, The Hollywood Reporter, 30 Oct. 2024

When Joker came out in 2019, it was greeted with a firestorm of controversy about its potential to instigate violence that verged on a moral panic. —Alison Willmore, Vulture, 4 Oct. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1945, in the meaning defined at sense 1