Glossary
Firefighter Terms & Vocabulary
15 essential firefighter terms with plain-English definitions: the vocabulary you’ll hear in training and on day one.
Key firefighter vocabulary
These 15 terms come up constantly in firefighter training, on the job and in interviews. Knowing them helps you follow instructions, document accurately and sound prepared.
- Attack line
- A hose line used to put out fire.
- Backdraft
- An explosion caused by oxygen entering an oxygen-starved fire.
- Engine
- An apparatus that carries water, hose and a pump.
- Flashover
- Simultaneous ignition of everything in a room.
- GPM
- Gallons per minute: water flow rate.
- Incident Command System (ICS)
- A standardized structure for managing emergencies.
- Overhaul
- Searching for and extinguishing hidden fire after knockdown.
- PAR
- Personnel accountability report: a roll call confirming all members are safe.
- PASS device
- Personal alert safety system that sounds if a firefighter stops moving.
- RIT
- Rapid intervention team: standby crew to rescue firefighters.
- SCBA
- Self-contained breathing apparatus: supplies breathable air in smoke.
- Size-up
- Evaluating an incident on arrival.
- Truck (ladder)
- An apparatus with an aerial ladder for rescue and ventilation.
- Turnout gear (bunker gear)
- Protective coat, pants, boots, helmet, hood and gloves.
- Ventilation
- Removing heat and smoke from a structure.
Practice these terms
Test yourself with the free Firefighter practice test: it includes vocabulary questions built from this list. For a complete course, see Firefighter training.
Browse terms from every career in our career glossary.