Firefighter

Part of speech: noun

Pronunciation: /ˈfaɪə(ɹ)ˌfaɪ.tə(ɹ)/

Definitions

1. A trained professional who responds to emergencies to extinguish flames, rescue people and animals from danger, and provide emergency medical assistance
2. A skilled worker dedicated to combating blazes, facilitating the evacuation of individuals in peril, and delivering first aid when necessary
3. A person who specializes in fire suppression, ensuring the safety of those affected by fires and offering rescue and medical aid as needed

Etymology: A firefighter is about as transparent as compounds get: "fire" plus "fighter," with nothing hidden underneath. The surprise lies in why the word exists at all. It was built on purpose as a gender-neutral replacement for "fireman" and "firewoman," so the older terms were already in use before this one arrived. The new coinage let the job be described without assuming whether the person doing it was a man or a woman. The pieces themselves are old, deeply English, and perfectly ordinary. "Fire" and "fighter" each carry their own long histories, but the compound does nothing clever: it simply names a person who fights fires. Its strength is that it says exactly what the job is, and nothing about who is supposed to do it.

Synonyms: fireman, firewoman, fire service, fire rescue, fire brigade