‘Firey’ or ‘Fiery’: How to Spell It Correctly

Does a dragon have ‘firey’ breath or ‘fiery’ breath? Wondering how to spell the adverb version of the word ‘fire’? Well, we’ve got you covered. We’ll talk about that in more detail below. Plus, we’ll teach you how to use the word correctly in a sentence.

The correct spelling of the word is ‘fiery.’ Any other spelling of the word is incorrect.

Firey vs. Fiery: What’s the Difference?

So, you learned that ‘fiery’ is the correct way to spell the word. But what’s the difference between the two words, and are they both even words?

Short answer? No.

The difference is that ‘firey’ isn’t a word and ‘fiery’ is a word.

Firey vs. Fiery: What is the Right Spelling? 

The correct spelling of the word is ‘fiery.’ It might seem confusing since you spell the word ‘fire’ with the ‘I’ and ‘e’ switched around.

The English language can be tricky that way.

Understanding Adjectives

The word ‘fiery’ is an adjective.

What is an adjective? An adjective is a word that describes or modifies nouns and pronouns. That means that limit or restricting the meaning of these nouns and pronouns.

There are positive, comparative, and superlative adjectives.

Positive adjectives describe a person, place, thing, idea, or experience in a positive way or when there are no differences between the two things being compared.

Comparative adjectives are used to compare two people or things.

Superlative adjectives are used to compare more than two people or things.

Check out some examples of positive adjectives:

• Karla is as beautiful as her mother.
• Jane is as smart as her older sister.
• Todd is as strong as his brother.
• Lisa is as tall as her father and brother.

Take a look at some examples of comparative adjectives:

• My boat is bigger than his. (comparing two things)
• I’m younger than my sister by two years. (comparing two people)
• We’re more considerate than our neighbors.
• We’re happier than our friends.

Now let’s see a few examples of superlative adjectives:

• She was the youngest person to ever win an Emmy award. (comparing more than two people)
• My house is the biggest one on a quiet little cul-de-sac. (comparing more than two things)
• I have the smartest six-year-old in the class.
• This is the longest day of the year.

Definition and Meaning

The Merriam- Webster's definition of the word ‘fiery’ is: “consisting of fire,” “marked by fire,” “using or carried out with fire,” “liable to catch fire or explode: flammable,” “hot like fire,” “being in an inflamed state or condition,” “feverish and flushed,” “of the color of fire: red,” “full of or exuding emotion or spirit,” and “easily provoked: irritable.”

Other variations of the word include:

• Fierily (adverb)
• Fieriness (noun)

Using the Word in a Sentence Correctly 

Now that we know how to spell the word correctly and how it’s defined, we can move on to using it in a sentence correctly.

Take a look at a few examples of how to use the word correctly:

• The dragons in Game of Thrones subjected many characters to a fiery death.
• A lot of trees in that forest will meet a fiery end.
• The restaurateur I met last year died in a fiery explosion last week.
• No one wants to die a fiery death at the office; no metal in the microwave.

Now you can start practicing coming up with your own sentences using the word.

Concluding Thoughts on ‘Firey’ and ‘Firey’

To recap what we just discussed, you know that the correct way to spell the word is ‘fiery’ and that any other spelling of the word is incorrect and ungrammatical.

When writing out the word ‘fiery,’ remember that it’s spelled the opposite way of ‘fire.’ It’s ‘I’ before ‘e’ in this case.

If you have trouble with this or other words like it (such as ‘column’ or ‘balloon’), don’t be afraid to come back and browse our library of articles dedicated to explaining confusing words and phrases.