Dictionary
Thesaurus
Encyclopedia
Translator
Web
Related Searches
Synonyms
Nearby Words

miss fire

 - 6 dictionary results

fire

  [fahyuhr] noun, verb, fired, fir⋅ing.
Use miss fire in a Sentence
–noun
1. a state, process, or instance of combustion in which fuel or other material is ignited and combined with oxygen, giving off light, heat, and flame.
2. a burning mass of material, as on a hearth or in a furnace.
3. the destructive burning of a building, town, forest, etc.; conflagration.
4. heat used for cooking, esp. the lighted burner of a stove: Put the kettle on the fire.
5. Greek fire.
6. flashing light; luminous appearance.
7. brilliance, as of a gem.
8. burning passion; excitement or enthusiasm; ardor.
9. liveliness of imagination.
10. fever or inflammation.
11. severe trial or trouble; ordeal.
12. exposure to fire as a means of torture or ordeal.
13. strength, as of an alcoholic beverage.
14. a spark or sparks.
15. the discharge of firearms: enemy fire.
16. the effect of firing military weapons: to pour fire upon the enemy.
17. British. a gas or electric heater used for heating a room.
18. Literary. a luminous object, as a star: heavenly fires.
–verb (used with object)
19. to set on fire.
20. to supply with fuel; attend to the fire of: They fired the boiler.
21. to expose to the action of fire; subject to heat.
22. to apply heat to in a kiln for baking or glazing; burn.
23. to heat very slowly for the purpose of drying, as tea.
24. to inflame, as with passion; fill with ardor.
25. to inspire.
26. to light or cause to glow as if on fire.
27. to discharge (a gun).
28. to project (a bullet or the like) by or as if by discharging from a gun.
29. to subject to explosion or explosive force, as a mine.
30. to hurl; throw: to fire a stone through a window.
31. to dismiss from a job.
32. Veterinary Medicine. to apply a heated iron to (the skin) in order to create a local inflammation of the superficial structures, with the intention of favorably affecting deeper inflammatory processes.
33. to drive out or away by or as by fire.
–verb (used without object)
34. to take fire; be kindled.
35. to glow as if on fire.
36. to become inflamed with passion; become excited.
37. to shoot, as a gun.
38. to discharge a gun: to fire at a fleeing enemy.
39. to hurl a projectile.
40. Music. to ring the bells of a chime all at once.
41. (of plant leaves) to turn yellow or brown before the plant matures.
42. (of an internal-combustion engine) to cause ignition of the air-fuel mixture in a cylinder or cylinders.
43. (of a nerve cell) to discharge an electric impulse.
—Verb phrases
44. fire away, Informal. to begin to talk and continue without slackening, as to ask a series of questions: The reporters fired away at the president.
45. fire off,
a. to discharge (as weapons, ammunition, etc.): Police fired off canisters of tear gas.
b. to write and send hurriedly: She fired off an angry letter to her congressman.
—Idioms
46. between two fires, under physical or verbal attack from two or more sides simultaneously: The senator is between two fires because of his stand on the bill.
47. build a fire under, Informal. to cause or urge to take action, make a decision quickly, or work faster: If somebody doesn't build a fire under that committee, it will never reach a decision.
48. catch fire,
a. Also, catch on fire. to become ignited; burn: The sofa caught fire from a lighted cigarette.
b. to create enthusiasm: His new book did not catch fire among his followers.
49. fight fire with fire, to use the same tactics as one's opponent; return like for like.
50. go through fire and water, to brave any danger or endure any trial: He said he would go through fire and water to win her hand.
51. hang fire,
a. to be delayed in exploding, or fail to explode.
b. to be undecided, postponed, or delayed: The new housing project is hanging fire because of concerted opposition.
52. miss fire,
a. to fail to explode or discharge, as a firearm.
b. to fail to produce the desired effect; be unsuccessful: He repeated the joke, but it missed fire the second time.
53. on fire,
a. ignited; burning; afire.
b. eager; ardent; zealous: They were on fire to prove themselves in competition.
54. play with fire, to trifle with a serious or dangerous matter: He didn't realize that insulting the border guards was playing with fire.
55. set fire to,
a. to cause to burn; ignite.
b. to excite; arouse; inflame: The painting set fire to the composer's imagination.
Also, set on fire.
56. take fire,
a. to become ignited; burn.
b. to become inspired with enthusiasm or zeal: Everyone who heard him speak immediately took fire.
57. under fire,
a. under attack, esp. by military forces.
b. under censure or criticism: The school administration is under fire for its policies.
Origin:
bef. 900; (n.) ME; OE fȳr; c. ON fūrr, G Feuer, Gk pŷr (see pyro- ); (v.) ME firen to kindle, inflame, deriv. of the n.

Related forms:
firer, noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To miss fire
miss 1   (mĭs)   
v.   missed, miss·ing, miss·es

v.   tr.

  1. To fail to hit, reach, catch, meet, or otherwise make contact with.

  2. To fail to perceive, understand, or experience: completely missed the point of the film.

  3. To fail to accomplish, achieve, or attain (a goal).

  4. To fail to attend or perform: never missed a day of work.

    1. To leave out; omit.

    2. To let go by; let slip: miss a chance.

  6. To escape or avoid: narrowly missed crashing into the tree.

  7. To discover the absence or loss of: I missed my book after getting off the bus.

  8. To feel the lack or loss of: Do you miss your family?

v.   intr.

  1. To fail to hit or otherwise make contact with something: fired the final shot and missed again.

    1. To be unsuccessful; fail.

    2. To misfire, as an internal-combustion engine.

n.  

  1. A failure to hit, succeed, or find.

  2. The misfiring of an engine.


[Middle English missen, from Old English missan; see mei-1 in Indo-European roots.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source
Word Origin & History

fire  (n.)
O.E. fyr, from P.Gmc. *fuir (cf. O.Fris. fiur, O.N. fürr, M.Du. vuur, Ger. Feuer), from PIE *perjos, from root *paewr- (cf. Armenian hur "fire, torch," Czech pyr "hot ashes," Gk. pyr, Umbrian pir, Skt. pu, Hittite pahhur "fire"). Current spelling is attested as early as 1200, but did not fully displace M.E. fier (preserved in fiery) until c.1600. PIE apparently had two roots for fire: *paewr- and *egni- (cf. L. ignis). The former was "inanimate," referring to fire as a substance, and the latter was "animate," referring to it as a living force (see water). Fire applied in Eng. to passions, feelings, from c.1340. The v. sense of "sack, dismiss" is first recorded 1885 in Amer.Eng., probably from a play on the two meanings of discharge: "to dismiss from a position," and "to fire a gun," the second sense being from "set fire to gunpowder," attested from 1530. The first use of fireman as "person hired to put out (rather than tend) fires" is 1714. Firecracker is Amer.Eng. coinage for what is in England just cracker, but the U.S. word distinguishes it from the word meaning "biscuit." Firebrand "one who kindles mischief or passions" is from 1382. Firefly is attested from 1658. Fired up "angry" is from 1824. To play with fire "risk disaster" is from 1887; phrase where's the fire? "what's the hurry?" first recorded 1924.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
Cite This Source
Medical Dictionary

Main Entry: 2fire
Function: verb
Inflected Forms: fired; fir·ing
transitive senses
1 : to cause to transmit a nerveimpulse
2 : to sear (the leg of a horse) with a hot iron in order to convert a crippling chronic inflammation into an acute inflammation that will stimulate the natural healingresponses of the body fire intransitive senses
: to transmit a nerve impulse fires>
Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, © 2002 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
Cite This Source
Medical Dictionary

fire (fīr)
v. fired, fir·ing, fires
To generate an electrical impulse. Used of a neuron.

The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Cite This Source
Idioms & Phrases

miss fire

Fail to achieve the anticipated result, as in Recycling cardboard seemed like a good idea but it missed fire. First recorded in 1727, this phrase originally described a firearm failing to go off and has been used figuratively since the mid-1800s.

The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.
Copyright © 1997. Published by Houghton Mifflin.
Cite This Source
Search another word or see miss fire on Thesaurus | Reference
FacebookTwitterFollow us:
Partner Sites:
Ask AnswersEviteExpediaHotelsHotwireLife123LiveDailyMy Way