fire raiser
Preserved but no longer current.
Meaning · English
One guilty of arson for profit, usually to collect insurance money.
Era: ca. 1898 (Victorian)
Sources & notes
Reproduced from Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable (1898 edition, public domain; archive.org, retrieved 2026-07-31; OCR text, minor errors possible). Reflects the scholarship and attitudes of its era.
Common questions
What does “fire raiser” mean?
One guilty of arson for profit, usually to collect insurance money.
Is “fire raiser” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.