deflagrate

verb

Definition of deflagratenext
as in to ignite

Related Words

Relevance

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for deflagrate
  1. ignite
  2. fire
  3. kindle
Verb
  • Miramax's explosive success with Pulp Fiction ignited an indie boom, rewrote Oscar campaigns, and blurred the line between independent cinema and the Hollywood mainstream.
    — Big Think, Big Think, 4 Aug. 2026
  • Getz enjoys getting brotherly advice from Hoyer, who executed his own semi-rebuild in 2021 and worked under Theo Epstein on the 2012 Cubs rebuild that ignited the trend across baseball.
    — Paul Sullivan, Chicago Tribune, 4 Aug. 2026
Definition of ignite
Verb
  • Over the weekend, the Houthis fired missiles at two Saudi oil complexes on the Red Sea coast.
    — Nadeen Ebrahim, CNN Money, 2 Aug. 2026
  • The Pathfinder, with shooters still firing, chases the Jeep down the street, toward downtown Seattle and into the night.
    — Sydney Brownstone, NPR, 2 Aug. 2026
Definition of fire
Verb
  • These innocuous-seeming actions can kindle dry vegetation, potentially spawning a wildfire.
    — CA Weather Bot, Sacbee.com, 15 July 2026
  • Photography arrived, kindling an enthusiasm that Baudelaire, ever the cynic, compared to a lust for pornography.
    — Cal Revely-Calder, New Yorker, 29 June 2026
Definition of kindle
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Browse Nearby Words

definitude
deflagrate
deflagrated
See all Nearby Words

Podcast

Theme music by Joshua Stamper ©2006 New Jerusalem Music/ASCAP

Cite this Entry

“Deflagrate.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/deflagrate. Accessed 8 Aug. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of nurture

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

7 Pairs of Commonly Confused Words

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

'Sneaked' or 'Snuck': Which is correct?

Why does English have so many silent letters?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Longest Long Words List

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Words of the Week - Aug. 7

How long is a jiffy?
See More

Popular

See More

7 Pairs of Commonly Confused Words

The Longest Long Words List

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
fridge-magnet-letters
Drop a Letter Quiz August 2026 Drop a letter from a word to make a totally diffe...
See All