bonfire

Definitions


[ˈbɒnfʌɪə], (Noun)

Definitions:
- a large open-air fire used for burning rubbish or as part of a celebration
(e.g: the smell of burning leaves from a garden bonfire)


Phrases:

Origin:
late Middle English: from bone + fire. The term originally denoted a large open-air fire on which bones were burnt (sometimes as part of a celebration), also one for burning heretics or proscribed literature. Dr Johnson accepted the mistaken idea that the word came from French bon ‘good’




definition by Oxford Dictionaries