flash point

1 a potentially explosive place or situation that troubled region remains one of the world's most dangerous flash points Synonyms tinderbox, powder keg, time bomb, volcanoRelated Words hot button, third rail

2 a time or state of affairs requiring prompt or decisive action racial tensions in the city were at a flash point Synonyms boiling point, breaking point, clutch, conjuncture, crisis, crossroad(s), crunch, crunch time, Dunkirk, exigency, extremity, emergency, head, juncture, tinderbox, zero hourRelated Words contingency, possibility; climax, turning point; happening, landmark, milestone; condition, pass, situation, strait; deadlock, impasse, stalemate; corner, fix, hole, hot water, jam, last ditch, pinch, predicament, scrape, spot; eleventh hour, last minute