Synonyms of powder keg

powder keg

noun

as in volcano

a potentially explosive place or situation

the immigration bill has become a political powder keg for legislators on both sides of the aisle

Synonyms & Similar Words

• volcano
• time bomb
• flash point
• third rail
• hot button
• tinderbox

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of powder keg

Ferreira is the lone outsider, a friend of the youngest son, Johnny, who gets thrown into a powder keg of a holiday. — Kate Erbland, IndieWire, 15 Apr. 2026

Of course, the wedding turns into a powder keg of secrets, and the orderly proceedings blow up in the protagonists’ faces and leave a trail of emotional and physical pain. — Richard Brody, New Yorker, 7 Apr. 2026

The Middle East, a global geopolitical issue since the collapse of the Ottoman Empire, and even more of a powder keg since the creation of Israel in 1948, is conflagrating once again. — Michael Khouw, CNBC, 5 Mar. 2026

Or, perhaps even more likely, Iran devolves into a morass, a chaotic power struggle that destabilizes the entire powder keg of a region. — The Editorial Board, Chicago Tribune, 1 Mar. 2026