Meaning & use
fire guard
Last updated
Meanings
nouncountableBritish
a metal screen placed in front of a fireplace to stop sparks or objects from reaching the room
Grammar: Countable: a fire guard, two fire guards.
Patterns
- put up a fire guard
- a fire guard in front of the fireplace
Always put a fire guard in front of the fire when children are in the room.
The fire guard prevented a log from rolling onto the carpet.
She bought a decorative fire guard for the living room fireplace.
nouncountable
a person whose job is to watch for and deal with fires, especially in a forest or factory
Grammar: Countable; often used in job titles or official contexts.
Patterns
- work as a fire guard
- a forest fire guard
The fire guard patrolled the forest during the dry season.
He worked as a fire guard at the chemical plant.
Word forms
| plural | fire guards |
|---|
Common combinations
- put a fire guard in front of the fire
- They put a fire guard in front of the fire before leaving the room.
- a mesh fire guard
- A mesh fire guard is light and easy to move.
- a fire guard for children
- This fire guard is designed to keep children safe.
- remove the fire guard
- He removed the fire guard to add more wood.
Synonyms and how they differ
- fire screen
- The usual American term for the same object; it can also mean a screen placed in front of a fire for decoration.
- spark guard
- A more specific term for a screen that catches sparks, often used for open fires.
Commonly confused: fire guard or firefighter?
fire guard vs firefighter
A firefighter is a person trained to put out fires; a fire guard can be a screen or a person who watches for fires.
Practice
They placed a ______ in front of the fireplace to keep the sparks off the carpet.
Choose one answer.
A fire guard is the screen placed in front of a fire. A firefighter is a person, a fire alarm warns of fire, and a fire escape is a way out of a building.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “fire guard”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.