false fire

noun

A combustible carried by vessels of war, chiefly for signalling, but sometimes burned for the purpose of deceiving an enemy.

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Meanings

nounfalse fire (plural false fires)

plural false fires

  1. historicalA combustible carried by vessels of war, chiefly for signalling, but sometimes burned for the purpose of deceiving an enemy.
  2. historicalA light on shore for decoying a vessel to destruction.
Cite this entry
APA

false fire. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/false%20fire

MLA

“false fire.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/false%20fire. Accessed November 2, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “false fire,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/false%20fire.

Source: false fire on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.