Fireman (album)
WordNet
noun
(1) Play in which children pretend to put out a fire
(2) A member of a fire department who tries to extinguish fires
(3) A pitcher who does not start the game
(4) A laborer who tends fires (as on a coal-fired train or steamship)
WiktionaryText
Noun
- A person who is skilled in the work of fighting fire.
- A fireman that is of the male sex (see usage note).
- A man who keeps the fire going underneath a steam boiler (originally, shoveling coal by hand), particularly on a railroad locomotive.
- ca. 1913 The wreck of Old 97 [ballad, ], verse 3:
- 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'.
- ca. 1913 The wreck of Old 97 [ballad, ], verse 3:
- By extension of the above, an assistant on any locomotive, whether steam-powered or not.
- A relief pitcher.
Usage notes
Fireman and its plural are usually used to refer to all firefighters. For a female firefighter, firewoman or firefighter is sometimes preferred.
Related terms
- fire truck
- fire engine
- fire extinguisher
- fire hose
- fire station
- fire hydrant
- fireplug
- tillerman