Where does “wildfire” come from?

Wildfire comes from Old English wilde fȳr, literally meaning wild fire.

wildfire (English): A rapidly spreading fire, especially one...

Definitions

  1. A rapidly spreading fire, especially one...

Ancestry of “wildfire”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle Englishwilde fyrA destructive or extreme fire; a wildfire
2Old Englishwilde fȳrwildfire

Words derived from “wildfire

Every word from Old English wilde fȳr
wildfire — Etymology, Origin & Word History | Etymology Explorer