burning

burning — adjective

1. actively in flames; something that is on fire and giving off heat and light at t

1.adjectiveB1
Definition

actively in flames; something that is on fire and giving off heat and light at this moment.

Example

Firefighters pulled an elderly man out of the burning house on Maple Street.

attributive: a burning + noun (object on fire)

Sparks from the burning logs jumped onto the rug, and Maya quickly stamped them out.

Common collocations
  • a burning building
  • a burning house
  • a burning candle
  • burning logs
  • a burning car
Synonyms
  • blazing

    burning strongly with bright flames

  • flaming

    with visible flames; often more vivid

  • alight

    predicative only: 'the barn was alight'

Antonyms

Grammar Patterns

a burning + noun

be burning

Usage Note

Mostly attributive (a burning building, a burning candle). When predicative, the subject is the thing in flames itself, not the fire — say 'the house is burning', not 'the fire is burning the house' for this sense.

Common Mistakes

The burning was very hot.
The fire was very hot.
'burning' is an adjective describing what is on fire; use 'fire' or 'flames' for the thing itself.

2. so hot that it almost feels like fire on your skin, even though nothing is actua

2.adjectiveB2
Definition

so hot that it almost feels like fire on your skin, even though nothing is actually on fire — used about the sun, weather, sand, metal in the sun, and similar things.

Example

Tourists hopped from foot to foot on the burning sand as they ran toward the sea.

collocation: the burning sand / sun / pavement

Under the burning August sun, the workers stopped every hour to drink cold water.

Common collocations
  • the burning sun
  • burning sand
  • burning heat
  • burning cheeks
Synonyms
  • scorching

    even stronger; usually about sun or weather

  • scalding

    of liquids hot enough to hurt

  • boiling

    informal: extremely hot weather

Antonyms

Grammar Patterns

the burning sun/heat/sand

Usage Note

Distinguish from sense 1: in sense 2 there are no real flames. Common subjects are surfaces (sand, metal, pavement), weather words (sun, heat), and body parts that feel hot (cheeks, forehead, skin).

Common Mistakes

My soup is burning, I cannot drink it.
My soup is boiling hot, I cannot drink it.
'burning' is rarely used for food and drink that are simply too hot; prefer 'boiling hot' or 'scalding'.

3. describes a pain or feeling in the body that is sharp and stings, as if a small

3.adjectiveB2
Definition

describes a pain or feeling in the body that is sharp and stings, as if a small fire were touching the skin from inside — used about pain, fevers, throats, eyes, and cuts.

Example

Maya woke at 3 a.m. with a burning pain in her stomach and called her doctor in the morning.

collocation: a burning pain / sensation

After eating the chili, Marcus felt a burning sensation on his tongue that lasted ten minutes.

Common collocations
  • a burning pain
  • a burning sensation
  • a burning fever
  • a burning throat
Synonyms
  • stinging

    sharp surface pain, like an insect bite

  • searing

    stronger; sudden, intense pain

  • smarting

    milder; the sting after a small cut or slap

Antonyms

Grammar Patterns

a burning + body-state noun

Usage Note

Distinguish from sense 2 ('extremely hot'): sense 3 is about an internal body sensation, not the temperature of an outside object. Common collocates: 'burning pain', 'burning sensation', 'burning fever', 'burning throat'.

Common Mistakes

I have a burning in my chest.
I have a burning sensation in my chest.
'burning' is an adjective; pair it with a noun like 'pain', 'feeling', or 'sensation'.

4. of a wish, ambition, or emotion: so powerful that the person cannot stop thinkin

4.adjectiveC1
Definition

of a wish, ambition, or emotion: so powerful that the person cannot stop thinking about it and feels driven to act on it.

Example

Since the age of six, Lina had a burning ambition to dance with the Royal Ballet in London.

collocation: a burning ambition / desire / wish

Marcus left his office job because of a burning desire to write novels in the countryside.

Common collocations
  • a burning desire
  • a burning ambition
  • a burning hatred
  • burning curiosity
  • a burning passion
Synonyms
  • intense

    strong but more neutral and broader

  • fierce

    strong and aggressive; often of competition or loyalty

  • passionate

    driven by deep emotion; positive tone

Antonyms
  • mild

    weak or gentle in feeling

Grammar Patterns

a burning desire/ambition/hatred (to do sth)

Usage Note

Almost always attributive, in front of an emotion or wish noun (desire, ambition, wish, hatred, love, curiosity, passion). You cannot say 'her desire is burning' for this sense.

Common Mistakes

I have a burning to learn Japanese.
I have a burning desire to learn Japanese.
'burning' here always needs a feeling-noun after it (desire, wish, ambition, etc.).

5. of a topic, question, or problem: so important that people want an answer or act

5.adjectiveC1
Definition

of a topic, question, or problem: so important that people want an answer or action right away and will not wait.

Example

Climate change is the burning issue of our generation, and young voters keep raising it at every debate.

collocation: a burning issue / question / problem

The reporter began the press conference with the burning question on every parent's mind: when will the schools reopen?

Common collocations
  • a burning issue
  • a burning question
  • a burning problem
  • a burning topic
Synonyms
  • pressing

    needing immediate attention; very common in news English

  • urgent

    must be dealt with at once; broader scope

  • crucial

    extremely important, but not always urgent

Antonyms

Grammar Patterns

a burning question/issue/problem

Usage Note

Distinguish from sense 4: sense 5 modifies cold-headed nouns (question, issue, problem, topic) — things to be discussed or solved. Sense 4 modifies feeling nouns (desire, hatred). Almost always attributive.

Common Mistakes

This question is burning.
This is a burning question.
for this sense, 'burning' goes before the noun, not after a linking verb.

Word family

  • burn
    verbA2
  • burn
    nounB1
  • burner
    nounB2
  • burnt
    adjectiveB1
  • burningly
    adverbC2

Synonym discussion

Sense: adjective/4

All four words describe strong feelings, but they differ in tone and what they typically modify. 'Burning' is the most personal and almost physical — it suggests a wish or hatred that the speaker cannot ignore, and it goes before nouns like desire, ambition, hatred, curiosity. 'Intense' is the broadest and most neutral; it can describe pleasant or unpleasant feelings, light, colour, or work, with no built-in image of fire. 'Fierce' adds an aggressive or competitive edge — fierce loyalty, fierce competition, fierce loyalty to a team. 'Passionate' is warm and approving, often about love, beliefs, or art. So a teenager has a burning desire to become a pilot, a researcher does intense work on cancer, a defender shows fierce loyalty to her club, and a violinist is a passionate performer.

burning ↗intense ↗fierce ↗passionate ↗

Common collocations

Nouns

  • burning building
  • burning sun
  • burning sand
  • burning pain
  • burning sensation
  • burning desire
  • burning ambition
  • burning issue
  • burning question

Adverbs

  • fiercely burning
  • still burning
  • brightly burning

Phrases

  • a burning smell
  • the burning sun overhead
  • a burning question on everyone's mind

Prepositions

  • burning with (anger / shame / desire)

Etymology

Old EnglishMiddle EnglishModern English

'Burning' is the present participle of the Old English verb 'beornan' / 'baernan', meaning to be on fire or to set on fire. The same root produced modern 'burn'. Originally only physical, the adjective grew metaphorical uses early in Middle English: a hot pain, then a strong feeling, and from the 1800s an urgent topic that 'cannot wait'. The image is the same in every sense — something so powerful you cannot ignore it, as if real flames were involved.