tinderbox

noun

tin·​der·​box ˈtin-dər-ˌbäks 

1

a

: a metal box for holding tinder and usually a flint and steel for striking a spark

b

: a highly inflammable object or place

2

: a potentially explosive place or situation

Synonyms

• flash point
• powder keg
• time bomb
• volcano

Example Sentences

That old house is really a tinderbox.

officials sought to calm the situation, which had grown into a tinderbox

Recent Examples on the Web

Already, the innards of a landfill run hot, with the bacterial warmth of decomposition, insulated by blankets of garbage — a moist, chemically complex tinderbox. —Eric Boodman, STAT, 18 Apr. 2023

The Oregon fire has ravaged the southern part of the state and has been expanding by up to 4 miles (6 kilometers) a day, pushed by gusting winds and critically dry weather that's turned trees and undergrowth into a tinderbox. —Arkansas Online, 22 July 2021

Michigan in particular could be a tinderbox, said researchers at the Alethea Group, an organization combating disinformation, because of residual tensions from protests over pandemic restrictions that caused the state to cancel a legislative session. —Anchorage Daily News, 1 Oct. 2020

But a deadly, unintended consequence has emerged: Storing and charging such bikes and scooters indoors can create a tinderbox. —Joyce Cohen, BostonGlobe.com, 6 Mar. 2023

That spring, Europe was a tinderbox. —Shaun Assael, Smithsonian Magazine, 22 June 2021

Gold Rush San Francisco was a tinderbox. —Gary Kamiya, San Francisco Chronicle, 16 Apr. 2021

This was like a tinderbox. —Fox News, 6 June 2020

Yet today, an aerial view reveals huge swaths of the countryside surrounding Canberra blackened from a firestorm that threatened to engulf the city in 2003, after months of scorching weather turned pine forests into a giant tinderbox. —Linda Marsa, Discover Magazine, 25 Mar. 2012

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Word History

First Known Use

1530, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Kids Definition

tinderbox

noun

tin·​der·​box -ˌbäks 

1

: a metal box for holding tinder and usually a flint and steel for striking a spark

2

: something that can easily catch fire