Word.ws English Dictionary

getting on like a house on fire

getting on like a house on fire is the present participle and gerund of get on like a house on fire.

Meaning of get on like a house on fire

Verb

get on like a house on fire (third-person singular simple present gets on like a house on fire, present participle getting on like a house on fire, simple past got on like a house on fire, past participle (UK) got on like a house on fire or (US) gotten on like a house on fire)

  1. (simile) To immediately start a good relationship with someone.
    • Those two met last Saturday at the party, and because they were both into juggling they got on like a house on fire.

Questions about getting on like a house on fire

What is getting on like a house on fire the present participle and gerund of?
Getting on like a house on fire is the present participle and gerund of get on like a house on fire.

Words near getting on like a house on fire in the dictionary

  1. getting off the mark
  2. getting off the nut
  3. getting off with
  4. getting on
  5. getting on at
  6. getting on like a house on fire
  7. getting on someone's bad side
  8. getting on someone's case
  9. getting on someone's grill
  10. getting on someone's last nerve
  11. getting on someone's nerves

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: getting on like a house on fire (page history and authors); get on like a house on fire (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

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