arson

noun

ar·son ˈär-sᵊn

Synonyms of arson next

: the willful or malicious burning of property (such as a building) especially with criminal or fraudulent intent

Arson was determined to be the cause of the fire.

arsonist

ˈär-sᵊn-ist

noun

arsonous

ˈär-sᵊn-əs

adjective

Examples of arson in a Sentence

The cause of the fire has not yet been determined, but investigators suspect arson. The town has suffered a rash of arson attacks. The town has suffered a rash of arsons.

Recent Examples on the Web

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Russia has been accused of waging a hybrid war against Europe after a string of suspicious incidents, arson attacks, explosions and other acts of sabotage across multiple European countries were traced back to Moscow. —

Ivana Kottasová, CNN, 20 Nov. 2024 Quiles, 20, was charged with fourth-degree arson, fifth-degree arson and second-degree reckless endangerment, police said. —

Minyvonne Burke, NBC News, 13 Nov. 2024 This campaign has included election disinformation and arson attacks across Europe this year. —

Thomas G. Moukawsher, Newsweek, 5 Nov. 2024 In October, the teen admitted to arson, aggravated criminal damage and four accusations of endangerment with risk of imminent death. —

Maritza Dominguez, The Arizona Republic, 5 Nov. 2024 See all Example Sentences for arson

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from Anglo-French arsun, arson, arsoun "fire, willful setting of a destructive fire, burn on the skin, branding," going back to Gallo-Romance *ārsiōn-, ārsiō, from Latin ārdēre (perfect and supine stem ārs-) "to catch fire, burn, blaze" + -tiōn-, -tiō, suffix of verbal action — more at ardent

Note: Outside of Anglo-French, arsun, arson (with a by-form arsion) is sparsely attested in Old and Middle French. Französisches etymologisches Wörterbuch notes that medieval attestations and later survivals are markedly regional (west and southwest France, including Normandy and Francophone Brittany). — The normal suffix of verbal action in later classical Latin and Late Latin was -tiōn-, -tiō, added to the verbal base (competing with the u-stem suffix -tus more common in earlier Latin), with the exception of a small number of formations with -iōn-, -iō (see condition entry 1, legion entry 1, region). Because the phonetic stem changes conditioned by the verbal adjective/past participle suffix -tus (Indo-European *-tos) are identical to those conditioned by -tiōn-, -tiō, new formations with this suffix in post-classical Latin and proto-Romance copy the morphophonemic alterations of the verbal adjective. This is evident in *ārsiō, formed from ārdēre. Note that the perfect ārsī and presumed (?) supine ārsum are most likely themselves analogical forms based on second-conjugation verbs such as mansī, mansum (from manēre "to wait, remain"), given that ārdēre (from āridus, ārdus "dry") cannot be of great antiquity in Latin.

First Known Use

circa 1680, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler

The first known use of arson was circa 1680

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Cite this Entry

Style

“Arson.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/arson. Accessed 30 Nov. 2024.

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Kids Definition

arson

noun

ar·son ˈär-sᵊn

: the illegal burning of a building or other property

arsonist

-əst

noun

Legal Definition

arson

noun

ar·son ˈärs-ᵊn

: the act or crime of willfully, wrongfully, and unjustifiably setting property on fire often for the purpose of committing fraud (as on an insurance company)

arsonist

-ist

noun

Etymology

Anglo-French arsoun, alteration of Old French arsin, literally, conflagration, from ars, past participle of ardre to burn

Last Updated: 27 Nov 2024 - Updated example sentences

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arson

noun

Examples of arson in a Sentence

Word History

Dictionary Entries Near arson

Cite this Entry

Kids Definition

Legal Definition