Thesaurus results for 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

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Example Sentences

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Recent Examples of powder keg Nellie keeping things bottled up was a powder keg waiting to blow. —

Lizz Schumer, PEOPLE, 20 Jan. 2026 This week’s incident was the spark many feared amid a growing powder keg of heightened activity by immigration authorities in Minneapolis and nationwide. —

Marc Ramirez, USA Today, 10 Jan. 2026 In the update, Cumberbatch and Colman play a seemingly perfect husband and wife with the perfect family, but underneath the façade is a powder keg of resentment and fierce competition that eventually blows. —

Patrick Hipes, Deadline, 29 Oct. 2025 The entire country was a messianic powder keg. —

Literary Hub, 30 Sep. 2025 See All Example Sentences for powder keg

Recent Examples of Synonyms for powder keg

volcano

Noun

But the Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha'apai volcano, which erupted in 2022, was underwater.

— Lauren Sommer, NPR, 12 Mar. 2026
These volcanoes often produce slow-moving lava flows.

— Jackie Flynn Mogensen, Scientific American, 11 Mar. 2026