1
as in volcanoes
a potentially explosive place or situation
that troubled region remains one of the world's most dangerous flash points
Synonyms & Similar Words
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2
as in crises
a time or state of affairs requiring prompt or decisive action
tensions between the two longtime adversaries were at a flash point
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of flash points
But more potential flash points loom.
—
Jill Lawless The Associated Press, Arkansas Online, 5 Feb. 2026
Policymakers expect other flash points.
—Alan Greenblatt, CBS News, 12 Jan. 2026
And a handful of standout horror films from around the ’70s, Johnson argues, specifically mirrored and even accelerated feminist flash points at a moment when public opinion regarding the roles and rights of women was wildly in flux.
—Sophie Gilbert, The Atlantic, 30 Oct. 2025
Arrests are taking place all over the Chicago area, but some of the biggest flash points have occurred on the South and West Sides, which are home to many of the city’s largest Black and Latino communities.
—Geraldo Cadava, New Yorker, 16 Oct. 2025
Those efforts are now critical as AI and semiconductors become geopolitical flash points.
—Nick Lichtenberg, Fortune, 5 Aug. 2025
Jill Lawless The Associated Press, Arkansas Online, 5 Feb. 2026
Policymakers expect other flash points.
—Alan Greenblatt, CBS News, 12 Jan. 2026
And a handful of standout horror films from around the ’70s, Johnson argues, specifically mirrored and even accelerated feminist flash points at a moment when public opinion regarding the roles and rights of women was wildly in flux.
—Sophie Gilbert, The Atlantic, 30 Oct. 2025
Arrests are taking place all over the Chicago area, but some of the biggest flash points have occurred on the South and West Sides, which are home to many of the city’s largest Black and Latino communities.
—Geraldo Cadava, New Yorker, 16 Oct. 2025
Those efforts are now critical as AI and semiconductors become geopolitical flash points.
—Nick Lichtenberg, Fortune, 5 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for flash points
Noun
-
The visuals of erupting volcanoes, shifting mountain ranges, and ocean expansion all feature heavily as well—and will probably be what half of my family remembers most about the series.—
Alex Shoemaker,
Parents,
6 Mar. 2026
-
Mountains and valleys shape the paths of the wind; volcanoes scorch the air and shade it with their ash; ocean currents absorb heat and then evaporate into the sky, churning the air with their vapors.—
Burkhard Bilger,
New Yorker,
2 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
Chai Lifeline provides social, emotional and practical assistance to children and their families who are impacted by loss, medical crises and trauma.—
Jessica Tzikas,
Sun Sentinel,
10 Mar. 2026
-
But experts have long said that relying on military forces rather than investing in local policing threatens to worsen already grave security crises.—
Jeronimo Gonzalez,
semafor.com,
9 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
Ray’s most chaotic photograms—jumbles that push out of the frame or look like time bombs ready to explode—find echoes in his films, projected on the back walls, a show in themselves.—
Vince Aletti,
New Yorker,
3 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
Saddique was the second grandfather to die at the intersection that year; Sau Voong, 84, was killed while biking at the same crossroads a few months earlier.—
Ariane Lange,
Sacbee.com,
11 Mar. 2026
-
Rao, now the chief technology officer at Roost, a nonprofit dedicated to building AI safety infrastructure, believes humankind is at a crucial crossroads for building safeguards for AI.—
Allison Gordon,
CNN Money,
11 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
The intense temperature and pressure of the impact heated the moon's crust and mantle so much that many of the volatile elements present (volatiles are elements with low boiling points), including potassium, evaporated and escaped into space.—
Keith Cooper,
Space.com,
23 Jan. 2026
-
Thermodynamics drives selective recovery The researchers hypothesized that FJH combined with chlorine gas could exploit differences in Gibbs free energy and boiling points to selectively remove non-REE elements from magnet waste.—
Neetika Walter,
Interesting Engineering,
29 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
Video circulating on social media shows tense moments inside the cabin as passengers were instructed to put their heads down and raise their hands while armed officers entered the plane.—
Milena Malaver,
Miami Herald,
7 Mar. 2026
-
Members of the mother’s group, Walker’s family and advocates, held hands and in unison bowed their heads to listen.—
Mariana Navarrete Villegas,
Hartford Courant,
7 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Flash points.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/flash%20points. Accessed 13 Mar. 2026.
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