BARNBURNER

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does barnburner mean? 

• BARNBURNER (noun)
  The noun BARNBURNER has 2 senses:

1. someone who burns down a barn

2. an impressively successful event

  Familiarity information: BARNBURNER used as a noun is rare.

 Dictionary entry details 

• BARNBURNER (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

Someone who burns down a barn

Classified under:

Nouns denoting people

Hypernyms ("barnburner" is a kind of...):

arsonist; firebug; incendiary (a criminal who illegally sets fire to property)

Sense 2

Meaning:

An impressively successful event

Classified under:

Nouns denoting natural events

Context example:

the rock concert was a real barnburner

Hypernyms ("barnburner" is a kind of...):

success (an event that accomplishes its intended purpose)

Domain usage:

colloquialism (a colloquial expression; characteristic of spoken or written communication that seeks to imitate informal speech)