firebrick

noun

fire·​brick ˈfī(-ə)r-ˌbrik How to pronounce firebrick (audio)
: a refractory brick capable of sustaining high temperatures that is used especially for lining furnaces or fireplaces

Examples of firebrick in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web Keep the firebricks in place by corralling them behind a strip of molding, attached where the hearth extension meets the flooring in the room. Jeanne Huber, Washington Post, 17 Nov. 2023 The other is lined with furnace cement, then covered with firebricks laid in place without mortar. Roy Berendsohn, Popular Mechanics, 4 Apr. 2023 Set inside a circular wooden fence a few miles out of town, with the Sangre de Cristo range of the Rocky Mountains looming in the background, the pyre itself is a utilitarian structure: two waist-high stuccoed concrete walls lined inside with firebrick, and spanned by a plain metal grate. New York Times, 18 May 2022 Siemens built a new glass furnace with a small network of firebrick tubes. Jonathan Schifman, Popular Mechanics, 9 July 2018 Its dense firebrick floor draws and holds the fire’s heat; the insulated crown stores heat overhead, balancing the thermal mass and radiating heat downward. Janet Fletcher, San Francisco Chronicle, 17 Jan. 2018

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'firebrick.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1749, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of firebrick was in 1749

Dictionary Entries Near firebrick

Cite this Entry

“Firebrick.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/firebrick. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

firebrick

noun
fire·​brick -ˌbrik How to pronounce firebrick (audio)
: a brick capable of resisting great heat and used for lining furnaces or fireplaces

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