Like a house on fire

Origin of: Like a house on fire

Like a house on fire

A simile that expresses immediacy or spontaneity as in ‘to get on like a house on fire’ which signifies an instant rapport or kindred spirit, very much like the speed at which a house would burn. One suspects the expression dates from the days when most houses were made of thatch and timber and would hence go up in flames extremely quickly, yet the earliest citation found so far is in Thomas Carlyle’s history of Frederick II written in 1741.