the act of firing weapons or artillery at an enemy; "hold your fire until you can see the whites of their eyes"; "they retreated in the face of withering enemy fire"
a fireplace in which a relatively small fire is burning; "they sat by the fire and talked"
intense adverse criticism; "Clinton directed his fire at the Republican Party"; "the government has come under attack"; "don't give me any flak"
the event of something burning (often destructive); "they lost everything in the fire"
a severe trial; "he went through fire and damnation"
the process of combustion of inflammable materials producing heat and light and (often) smoke; "fire was one of our ancestors' first discoveries"
once thought to be one of four elements composing the universe (Empedocles)
bake in a kiln so as to harden; "fire pottery"
cause to go off; "fire a gun"; "fire a bullet"
go off or discharge; "The gun fired"
drive out or away by or as if by fire; "The soldiers were fired"; "Surrender fires the cold skepticism"
terminate the employment of; "The boss fired his secretary today"; "The company terminated 25% of its workers"