1
as in volcano
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 crisis
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 point
But, of course, schools were a frequent flash point during Emanuel’s mayoral tenure.
—
Daniel C. Vock, Chicago Tribune, 22 Jan. 2026
Taxes can often represent a flash point between a government and its people.
—Kent Jones, The Conversation, 17 Jan. 2026
Trump’s immigration agenda reached a flash point last week following an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officer fatally shooting of 37-year-old Renee Good, a Minnesota woman federal officials allege impeded an ICE operation in Minneapolis by using her vehicle as a weapon.
—Dominick Mastrangelo, The Hill, 13 Jan. 2026
Policymakers expect other flash points.
—Alan Greenblatt, CBS News, 12 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for flash point
Daniel C. Vock, Chicago Tribune, 22 Jan. 2026
Taxes can often represent a flash point between a government and its people.
—Kent Jones, The Conversation, 17 Jan. 2026
Trump’s immigration agenda reached a flash point last week following an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officer fatally shooting of 37-year-old Renee Good, a Minnesota woman federal officials allege impeded an ICE operation in Minneapolis by using her vehicle as a weapon.
—Dominick Mastrangelo, The Hill, 13 Jan. 2026
Policymakers expect other flash points.
—Alan Greenblatt, CBS News, 12 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for flash point
Recent Examples of Synonyms for flash point
Noun
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The world is home to gigantic storms bigger than Australia, 100-mph winds pummeling its northern reaches and a rocky moon named Io orbiting it that is notoriously riddled with lava-spewing volcanoes.—
Eric Lagatta,
USA Today,
5 Feb. 2026
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Washington's Mount Rainier National Park is named for the tallest volcano in the Cascade Range.—
Giovanna Caravetta,
Travel + Leisure,
4 Feb. 2026
Noun
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On Tuesday, the US Embassy in Havana urged American citizens in Cuba to take precautions amid the energy crisis by conserving fuel, water, food and charging their phones.—
Bianna Golodryga,
CNN Money,
5 Feb. 2026
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Nigeria is in the grip of a complex security crisis, with an insurgency by Islamic militants in the northeast alongside a surge in kidnappings for ransom by gunmen across the northwest and north-central regions over recent months.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
5 Feb. 2026
Noun
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Furthermore, the failure to understand how dark-side behaviors undermine psychological safety and collective judgment in day-to-day decision-making contributes to the ticking time bomb problem noted earlier.—
Mary Crossan,
Forbes.com,
21 Jan. 2026
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And as the population continues to age, hundreds of millions could soon be leaving the workforce — a demographic crisis and ticking time bomb in one.—
Victor Tangermann,
Futurism,
21 Jan. 2026
Noun
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Over 30 years ago, Los Angeles reached a boiling point following the acquittal of four police officers who brutally beat Rodney King.—
Okla Jones,
Essence,
1 Feb. 2026
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Mulier ultimately heated up the house to the boiling point with original, inventive designs, giving an experimental, modernist spin to Alaïa’s legacy of empowering, feminine and sculptural fashions.—
Miles Socha,
Footwear News,
30 Jan. 2026
Noun
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Saif al-Islam Gadhafi, the son of former Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi, has been killed in an apparent assassination at his home in the city of Zintan in northwestern Libya, the head of his political team said on Tuesday.—
Nic Robertson,
CNN Money,
4 Feb. 2026
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His cause of death was listed as blunt head trauma and stab wounds, records showed.—
Rachel Wolf,
FOXNews.com,
4 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
Windows is at breaking point, and Microsoft knows it.—
Tom Warren,
The Verge,
29 Jan. 2026
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Harbaugh, in 18 years, won a Super Bowl, and the Ravens were perennially in the playoff picture, but his inability to beat a Steelers’ squad in a game in which his tight end dropped a two-point conversion, and his rookie kicker missed the game-winning field goal, was the breaking point.—
Gladys Louise Tyler,
Forbes.com,
24 Jan. 2026
Noun
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Home crowds airing their frustration is nothing new, and the tension, especially for those teams chasing the title or trying to avoid relegation, will only increase as the season races towards crunch time.—
Dan Sheldon,
New York Times,
3 Feb. 2026
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That means getting stops at crunch time.—
Cedric Golden,
Austin American Statesman,
30 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Flash point.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/flash%20point. Accessed 10 Feb. 2026.
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