quick-fire
|quick-fire|
🇺🇸
/ˈkwɪkˌfaɪər/
🇬🇧
/ˈkwɪkˌfaɪə/
very rapid
Etymology
'quick-fire' originates from Modern English as a compound of the adjective 'quick' and the noun 'fire'.
'quick' comes from Old English 'cwic' meaning 'alive' and later 'moving quickly'; 'fire' comes from Old English 'fyr' (related to Proto-Germanic roots). The compound 'quick-fire' developed in later English (19th–20th century) and was used in contexts such as artillery ('quick-firing' guns) before broadening to general senses of rapidity.
Initially used in literal or technical senses (e.g., 'quick-firing' guns) to mean 'capable of firing rapidly'; over time it broadened to mean 'happening rapidly' or 'delivered in rapid succession' in general contexts.
Meanings by Part of Speech
Noun 1
a rapid sequence of questions, remarks, or events delivered one after another.
He faced a quick-fire of questions from the press.
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Verb 1
to ask or do something rapidly and in quick succession (a verbal transformation of the base form).
Reporters quick-fired questions at the candidate as he left the building.
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Adjective 1
happening very quickly or without delay; rapid.
They gave quick-fire answers to the interviewer.
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Adjective 2
intense and delivered in rapid succession (often used before a noun).
She handled a quick-fire series of interviews all afternoon.
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Last updated: 2025/11/01 13:22