a five-alarm fire

five-alarm fire

1. A fire that is so large or intense that it requires the presence of many firefighting units to try to contain it. A five-alarm fire is the reason we heard all of those sirens last night. My goodness, how did that turn into a five-alarm fire so quickly? The entire building might burn down! Is it true that an arsonist was responsible for the five-alarm fire in Meadowbrook last week?
2. Someone or something that is very intense or stressful. Boy, this project has really become a five-alarm fire with all the other problems it's created. Barb in Finance just acts like everything is a five-alarm fire—don't let her stress you out. Oh man, if this assignment came down from the CEO, that means it's a five-alarm fire for us to deal with.
See also: fire
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms. © 2024 Farlex, Inc, all rights reserved.

a five-alarm fire

verb
See a three-alarm fire
See also: fire
McGraw-Hill's Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions Copyright © 2006 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.
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