flammable
adjective
Did you know?
Why Inflammable Is Not the Opposite of Flammable
Combustible and incombustible are opposites but flammable and inflammable are synonyms. Why? The in- of incombustible is a common prefix meaning "not," but the in- of inflammable is a different prefix. Inflammable comes from Latin inflammare ("to inflame"), itself from in- (here meaning "in" or "into") plus flammare ("to flame"). Flammable also comes from flammare. In the early 20th century, firefighters worried that people might think inflammable meant "not able to catch fire," so they adopted flammable and nonflammable as official safety labels and encouraged their use to prevent confusion. In general use, flammable is now the preferred term for describing things that can catch fire, but inflammable is still occasionally used with that meaning as well.
Examples of flammable in a Sentence
Matthew Korfhage, WIRED, 24 Mar. 2025
Another consideration is how close the development sits to heavy vegetation and highly flammable fuels, and to manage them with a combination of wet zones, thinning zones, and fire-resistant planting.
—Jennifer Castenson, Forbes.com, 10 Apr. 2025
These stains can leave behind highly flammable residues that may ignite, even at low temperatures.
—Katelyn Squiers, Better Homes & Gardens, 6 Apr. 2025
Another has been figuring out how best to protect the buildings' historic but extremely flammable shingles, also known as shakes.
—Chloe Veltman, NPR, 31 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for flammable
Cite this Entry
“Flammable.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/flammable. Accessed 21 May. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
flammable
adjective
Share