Fierce Meaning
/fɪəs/Definition, CEFR level B2, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.
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Definition
adjExceedingly violent, severe, ferocious, cruel or savage.
adjResolute or strenuously active.
Sentence Examples
The competition has become fierce.
We are in a fierce competition with that company.
Synonyms & Antonyms
Antonyms:
CEFR Practice Quiz
The ____ storm raged all night, tearing branches from trees and flooding streets.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
The two teams have a ____ rivalry that has lasted for decades, making their matches very intense.
Word Origin & History
From Middle English fers, fiers, borrowed from Old French fers (“wild", "ferocious”), nominative of fer, from Latin ferus (“wild", "untamed”).
Literary Quotations & Historical Citations
"Their fights with other members of their own kind were always preceded by loud and fierce waulings or savage snarling and snapping of teeth […]"
— 2006, Kenneth Conibear, Northland Footprints:
"One constituent spent an hour educating me on the history of pit bulls: the Molossians, the Mastiffs; the Greeks, Romans, Brits, Tibetans, and Germans; the crossbreeds. A common theme ran throughout their history: they were the fiercest of fighters, and eventually bred to fight—in wars during antiquity, in dog fights for centuries. Regardless, they were again and again attacking other dogs and people."
— 2012, Michael Bryant, 28 Seconds: A True Story of Addiction, Tragedy, and Hope, Viking:
"Yet his passion for her had grown fiercer than ever, and he swore to himself that he would win her back from her phantasies. She, one may believe, was ready enough to listen."
— 1902, John Buchan, The Outgoing of the Tide:
"Trump’s fiercest advocates have launched their Samson option: If he can’t keep power, they’ll bring down the party with him by calling for a boycott of the election."
— 2020 December 29, Frida Ghitis, “Trump has set Republicans up to fail in Georgia”, in CNN, archived from the original on 03 Oct 2022:
Explore More B2 Vocabulary Words
CEFR Practice Quiz
The ____ storm raged all night, tearing branches from trees and flooding streets.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
The two teams have a ____ rivalry that has lasted for decades, making their matches very intense.