Here's a reference to important wildfire terms:

Conflagration:
A large and destructive fire, typically aggravated by strong winds that carry burning debris over natural or artificial barriers.

Crown Fires:
Fires spread by wind moving quickly along the tops of trees.

Dry Thunderstorm:
Typically a thunderstorm with a high altitude base in which thunder and lightning are observed, but little or no rain reaches the ground.

Fire Fuels:
All the dead and living material that will burn, including grasses, dead branches and pine needles on the ground, as well as standing live and dead trees, and minerals near the surface or artificial structures.

Ground Fires:
Fires that burn on or below the forest floor through the root system. Usually, they are started by lightning.

Helitack:
The use of helicopters to transport crews, equipment, and fire retardants or suppressants to the fire line during the initial stages of a fire.

Ladder Fuels:
Fuels (like shrubs and branches) that carry the fire from the ground to the tops of trees, the same way a person would climb a ladder.

For more about wildfires, read Wildfire Factoids, and Preparing for Wildfires.