Conflagration is a noun that refers to a large, disastrous fire.

Our word of the day comes almost directly from the Latin word conflagare (con flah GAR ay) which simply means ‘fire.’ But a conflagration isn’t just a fire — it’s an out-of-control blaze that causes unintended damage. In other words, you wouldn’t use it to describe a bonfire or the small blaze in your fireplace.

It saddened me to see all the damage caused by the conflagration at the museum. There’s something dejecting about seeing all that beauty destroyed by one giant fire.