burst into flames

verb

"burst-into-flames" is a 15-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“burst into flames” is uncommon English (outside the top frequency list), classed as a verb. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

Unranked
below top-frequency English
17
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Alternative form of burst into flame.

Corpus desk

Index EN-burst-into-flames · burst into flames · English

burst into flames · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
  • LEN-MEGA 17 letters
  • VOW-5 5 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-THIN "B" thin
  • PHOTO-UNK Peer pending

Read with this headword: Spelling guide for this pattern

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Key facts for burst into flames
PropertyValue
Headwordburst into flames
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
Letters17
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “burst into flames” in English

burst into flamesfalls outside the top-100,000 ranked English words, the long-tail zone of technical, archaic, or low-frequency vocabulary, exactly where readers second-guess spellings most.

Beyond rank #100,000. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

burst into flames is uncommon English outside the top frequency list, classed as averb. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "Alternative form of burst into flame.".

No misspelling variants are generated for burst into flames in our index, typically a sign the spelling maps closely to how the word sounds. We don't track a confusable pairing for this entry, suggesting its spelling stands apart enough that readers rarely confuse it with something else.

Our source data has no etymology on file for this entry, so any spelling logic here comes from how the word's sounds map to letters, not a documented origin story. The correct English form is burst into flames, spelled B-U-R-S-T- -I-N-T-O- -F-L-A-M-E-S.

Definition

  1. 1
    Alternative form of burst into flame.

Recorded use

Wiktionary example

These source excerpts show how burst into flames appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. People on their way to work / And baby, what do you expect? / Gonna burst into flames

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "burst into flames"?
"burst into flames" is spelled B-U-R-S-T- -I-N-T-O- -F-L-A-M-E-S.
What does "burst into flames" mean?
As a verb, "burst into flames" means: Alternative form of burst into flame.
What language does "burst into flames" come from?
"burst into flames" is a English word. PlainSpell's reference spans five languages -- English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German -- with definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data for each.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list