Fireman

/ˈfaɪɹmən/ · noun

Meaning

(firefighting) Someone (especially male) who is skilled in the work of fighting fire..

Definitions by Sense

1. (firefighting) Someone (especially male) who is skilled in the work of fighting fire.
2. (rail transport, nautical) A person (originally a man) who keeps the fire going underneath a steam boiler (originally, shoveling coal by hand), particularly on a railroad locomotive or steamship.
3. (rail transport, by extension) An assistant on any locomotive, whether steam-powered or not.
4. (baseball) A relief pitcher (reflecting the figurative analogy of rescuing the situation).
5. (mining, historical) A safety inspector in coal mines.

Example Sentences

For firemen everywhere rescuing cats from trees has been as much a part of the job as tackling blazing buildings.

By February 1944 there were over two thousand women employed at the Alabama Dry Dock and Shipbuilding Company [...]. There were also female firemen on almost every shipyard crane [...].

He looked around his cab at his black greasy fireman, saying 'shovel on a little more coal, and when we cross that White Oak Mountain, you can watch Old 97 roll'.

(the latter is informal)

The fireman's job was about to get very interesting; they had just run out of coal!

No grass grew under a train when the engineer let Fireman McLash take the throttle.

A few keen enginemen, such as Driver Rosewarne of York, could coax good work out of them when engaged in heavy East Coast express service, but to most footplate crews, especially firemen, they were rather heartbreaking and backbreaking machines, and gradually were relegated to secondary or fast goods duties.

Driver G. A. Rowett, of the North Eastern Region's Neville Hill shed, now joined the locomotive as pilotman, and actually took over the regulator, Fireman Wheddon continuing to fire.

Synonyms for fireman

Antonyms for fireman

Related Words

Word Forms

• firemen

Usage Notes

Choose a synonym only when it preserves the intended meaning, tone, and grammar of the full sentence.

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