like wildfire

ADVERB

fast

Synonyms

STRONGEST

quick quickly rapidly soon swift swiftly

WEAK

apace chop-chop expeditiously flat-out fleetly full tilt hastily hurriedly in a flash in haste in nothing flat in short order like a flash like a shot like greased lightning posthaste presto promptly pronto

Antonyms

STRONGEST

slowly

WEAK

slow

ADVERB

on the double

Synonyms

WEAK

chop-chop double-time expeditiously fast flat-out fleetly full tilt hastily hurried hurriedly in a flash in double time in haste in high gear lickety-split like a shot like greased lightning promptly pronto quick quickly rapidly snappily speedily swift swiftly

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 giant number spread like wildfire across the investment world—and not in a good way.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 2, 2026

Surveying the wreckage of a week of AI disruption Hartnett observes it’s spreading like wildfire: insurance brokers Monday, wealth advisors Tuesday, real-estate services Wednesday and logistics Thursday.

From MarketWatch • Feb. 13, 2026

Hundreds of people showed up, and videos of people of all ages turning up in the popular supermarket spread like wildfire.

From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 23, 2025

It spread like wildfire on TikTok and Instagram, spawning its own hand gestures, and became so ubiquitous -- and annoying -- that it was reportedly banned in some US schools.

From Barron's • Nov. 26, 2025

Then another rumor took hold and raced through the crowd like wildfire until it was repeated so often that it sounded like truth.

From "Eleven" by Tom Rogers

like wildfire

Example Sentences

Related Words