What means set something on fire?

On fire is usually used of a building or vehicle which is burning, while you can set fire to anything combustible, including an object small enough to hold. So, in the case of a house, there is no difference in meaning.

When cities started adding chlorine to their water supplies, in the early 1900s, it set off public outcry.

• In the last year, her fusion exercise class has attracted a cult following and become de rigueur among the celebrity set.

• You would not think it too much to set the whole province in flames so that you could have your way with this wretched child.

  1. To begin burning something. He was caught setting the records on fire to hide the evidence from prosecutors.

  2. To do wonderful or exciting things that cause a great or remarkable sensation; to be extremely popular, famous, renowned, etc. I wouldn't be too concerned with what he thinks of you. For all his money and education, he's hardly setting the world on fire, is he? As a girl, Janet dreamed of setting the stage on fire as a famous actress.

  Meaning of set something/someone on fire in English

  set something/someone on fire

  idiom

  to cause something or someone to start burning:

  A peace activist had set herself on fire in protest over the government's involvement in the war.

  Thesaurus: synonyms, antonyms, and examples

  to start burning

  • catch fireA washing machine caught fire, sending the whole building up in flames.
  • catch alightHe was badly burned when his clothing caught alight.
  • kindleWe set up our tents and kindled a fire.
  • burst into flames Two men made a miraculous escape after their helicopter burst into flames.
  • combustOily rags placed near an open flame could spontaneously combust.
  • igniteThe gasoline ignited and the house was engulfed in flames.

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  SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases

  Starting fires

  • arsonist
  • combust
  • fire
  • fire starter
  • firelighter
  • ignite
  • ignition
  • incendiary
  • kindle
  • kindling
  • light
  • make
  • make something up
  • put
  • put something out
  • reignition
  • set fire to something/someone idiom
  • strike
  • tinder
  • torch

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  (Definition of set something/someone on fire from the Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary & Thesaurus © Cambridge University Press)

   

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  set something off

  set something to music idiom

  set something up

  set something/someone apart

  set something/someone on fire idiom

  set square

  set sth (off) against sth

  set text

  set the agenda idiom

  What does it mean to set someone on fire?

  (transitive) To cause to begin to burn. (figuratively, transitive) To arouse passionate feelings in. You set my heart on fire.

  When you set things on fire?

  Pyromania is one of the four recognized types of arson, alongside burning for profit, to cover up an act of crime and for revenge. Pyromania is the second most common type of arson. Common synonyms for pyromaniacs in colloquial English include firebug (US) and fire raiser (UK), but these also refer to arsonists.

  What does on fire mean in slang?

  Meaning. to be doing something really well.

  What do you call setting things on fire?

  Arson is a crime, but most arsonists don't have pyromania. Pyromania is a psychiatric disorder. In order to be diagnosed with pyromania, the following symptoms must be present: Setting a fire deliberately and on purpose on more than one occasion.