Synonyms

fire escape

American

noun

an apparatus or structure used to escape from a burning building, as a metal stairway down an outside wall.

fire escape British

noun

a means of evacuating people from a building in the event of fire, esp a metal staircase outside the building

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of fire escape

First recorded in 1670–80

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

The staffers trapped on the roof would run down the fire escape, then scale a wall at the back.

From BBC

Below her, the building’s fire escape was slowly emerging from the retreating water.

From Literature

The window to Anat’s room wasn’t hard to find, but rather than fly straight through, she landed on the fire escape a floor below so Anat wouldn’t see her change.

From Literature

The fire service are urging the public to make sure they do not overload electrical sockets, they have working smoke alarms at their properties and they have a fire escape plan in place.

From BBC

Other patients were helped out through corridors with the aid of fire escape hoods, a breathing apparatus used by fire brigades in smoke-filled environments.

From BBC

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023