as in burns
to set (something) on fire
tried using newspapers as kindling to ignite the logs in the fireplace
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Recent Examples of ignites
Continue reading … 'TRYING MY BEST' – Country star 'scared' after anti-Trump song ignites social media firestorm.
—
FOXNews.com, 8 Oct. 2025
How, exactly, Sarr’s future will play out often ignites spirited debate.
—Josh Robbins, New York Times, 7 Oct. 2025
With the colonies on the brink of collapse, the Reverend George Whitefield ignites the first Great Awakening, uniting an entire generation with his thundering and faithful sermons and proclamations of liberty.
—Anthony D'alessandro, Deadline, 30 Sep. 2025
The Aries Full Moon on the 6th energizes your expansion zone and ignites your sector of travel, publishing, spirituality, and belief systems.
—Dossé-Via Trenou, Refinery29, 30 Sep. 2025
What ignites or instigates that response, outside of being done with the machine?
—Abbey White, HollywoodReporter, 25 Sep. 2025
As Soledad battles a legal system riddled with corruption, inequality and skewed patriarchal values, Julieta’s case ignites a wave of outrage and solidarity, giving rise to a powerful movement demanding justice.
—Anna Marie De La Fuente, Variety, 24 Sep. 2025
The spacecraft ignites its onboard rocket motor, powering its own way to suborbital space, then glides back down for a runway landing here on Earth.
—Mike Wall, Space.com, 23 Sep. 2025
The movie also begins after Superman ignites an international incident by stopping a war from breaking out between the fictional neighboring nations of Boravia and Jarhanpur.
—Saman Shafiq, USA Today, 17 Sep. 2025
FOXNews.com, 8 Oct. 2025
How, exactly, Sarr’s future will play out often ignites spirited debate.
—Josh Robbins, New York Times, 7 Oct. 2025
With the colonies on the brink of collapse, the Reverend George Whitefield ignites the first Great Awakening, uniting an entire generation with his thundering and faithful sermons and proclamations of liberty.
—Anthony D'alessandro, Deadline, 30 Sep. 2025
The Aries Full Moon on the 6th energizes your expansion zone and ignites your sector of travel, publishing, spirituality, and belief systems.
—Dossé-Via Trenou, Refinery29, 30 Sep. 2025
What ignites or instigates that response, outside of being done with the machine?
—Abbey White, HollywoodReporter, 25 Sep. 2025
As Soledad battles a legal system riddled with corruption, inequality and skewed patriarchal values, Julieta’s case ignites a wave of outrage and solidarity, giving rise to a powerful movement demanding justice.
—Anna Marie De La Fuente, Variety, 24 Sep. 2025
The spacecraft ignites its onboard rocket motor, powering its own way to suborbital space, then glides back down for a runway landing here on Earth.
—Mike Wall, Space.com, 23 Sep. 2025
The movie also begins after Superman ignites an international incident by stopping a war from breaking out between the fictional neighboring nations of Boravia and Jarhanpur.
—Saman Shafiq, USA Today, 17 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for ignites
Verb
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Sometimes lightning hits the mountainside and splits or burns a tree.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
3 Nov. 2025
-
The cheapest, most efficient way to produce consistent heat has long been with fossil fuels; nothing burns as slow and hot as coal or natural gas.—
IEEE Spectrum,
IEEE Spectrum,
30 Oct. 2025
Verb
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That’s the difference between fury that scorches everything in sight and anger that fuels justice.—
Marc Brackett,
Time,
28 Oct. 2025
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Potent scenes fail to be as intense as Taylor’s grind-you-up performance that scorches everything and everyone around her.—
Randy Myers,
Mercury News,
19 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Pneumonia is an infection that inflames the sacs in one or both lungs, according to the Mayo Clinic.—
Rebecca Cohen,
NBC news,
16 Oct. 2025
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The shingles vaccine is up to 97% effective in preventing the condition caused by the herpes zoster virus, which inflames nerves and causes painful rashes.—
New Atlas,
New Atlas,
28 Aug. 2025
Verb
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While Martin Scorsese called it one of the scariest movies of all time, The Uninvited kindles a wonderful romance between Rick and Stella.—
Steven Thrash,
Entertainment Weekly,
25 Oct. 2025
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The star of Big Little Lies confessed her new film, Caught Stealing, kindles a powerful yearning for some aspects of the era.—
Ryan Coleman,
EW.com,
1 Sep. 2025
Verb
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The cartridge fires a 40-grain bullet at approximately 1,260 feet per second.—
Atharva Gosavi,
Interesting Engineering,
30 Oct. 2025
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Oh, and if Indiana fires him without cause, Cignetti would be due 100% of his remaining salary.—
Jacob Feldman,
Sportico.com,
29 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Ignites.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/ignites. Accessed 7 Nov. 2025.
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