Blaze means to burn very brightly and intensely, with large, visible flames. A campfire might start with small flames, but once it really gets going, it blazes with heat and light you can feel from several feet away. Forest fires blaze through dry trees, and the sun blazes down on a hot summer day.

The word also describes moving very fast or doing something with great intensity. A runner might blaze down the track at record speed. When someone blazes through their homework, they finish it quickly and energetically. A new band that suddenly becomes famous might blaze onto the music scene.

A blaze can also be the fire itself: you might add logs to keep the blaze going. A blaze is also a white marking on an animal's face, especially on horses, because it looks like a streak of bright light.

The word connects to trailblazer, someone who creates a new path for others to follow. Early explorers would cut marks called blazes into tree bark to mark trails through forests. A trailblazer in science or sports does something bold and new that others can follow, just like those marked trees showed the way through the wilderness.