variants
or volcanos
as in time bombs
a potentially explosive place or situation
after months of tension the roommates' living situation was a volcano
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Recent Examples of volcanoes
The city offers a mix of culture, volcanoes and close beaches.
—
Celia Fernandez, CNBC, 23 Jan. 2026
Mars is famous for its volcanoes, canyons and ancient river valleys, but some of its most active geology happens in slow motion, powered by air.
—Kenna Hughes-Castleberry, Space.com, 20 Jan. 2026
The Faroes formed over 50 million years ago as volcanoes erupted, blanketing the land in flows of lava that solidified into basalt.
—Maya Silver, Outside, 20 Jan. 2026
According to the Smithsonian Institution, Mount Aso is one of Japan’s most active volcanoes.
—David Chiu, PEOPLE, 20 Jan. 2026
The valley features more than 80 small cone volcanoes spread across a vast, arid terrain, creating a dramatic, lunar-like environment with a strong sense of scale and isolation.
—Anna Marie De La Fuente, Variety, 19 Jan. 2026
But tourists aren't the only ones who come here; the 335,259-acre park—and the two active volcanoes in it—hold cultural significance for Hawaiians.
—Sunny Fitzgerald, Travel + Leisure, 18 Jan. 2026
The result is far more complex than the drawings of volcanoes most saw in school, with a main vent connecting a chamber of magma with the surface.
—Arkansas Online, 11 Jan. 2026
Swarms are common near volcanoes and geothermal fields, where underground heat and fluids shift pressure inside the earth’s crust.
—Bay Area News Group, Mercury News, 9 Jan. 2026
Celia Fernandez, CNBC, 23 Jan. 2026
Mars is famous for its volcanoes, canyons and ancient river valleys, but some of its most active geology happens in slow motion, powered by air.
—Kenna Hughes-Castleberry, Space.com, 20 Jan. 2026
The Faroes formed over 50 million years ago as volcanoes erupted, blanketing the land in flows of lava that solidified into basalt.
—Maya Silver, Outside, 20 Jan. 2026
According to the Smithsonian Institution, Mount Aso is one of Japan’s most active volcanoes.
—David Chiu, PEOPLE, 20 Jan. 2026
The valley features more than 80 small cone volcanoes spread across a vast, arid terrain, creating a dramatic, lunar-like environment with a strong sense of scale and isolation.
—Anna Marie De La Fuente, Variety, 19 Jan. 2026
But tourists aren't the only ones who come here; the 335,259-acre park—and the two active volcanoes in it—hold cultural significance for Hawaiians.
—Sunny Fitzgerald, Travel + Leisure, 18 Jan. 2026
The result is far more complex than the drawings of volcanoes most saw in school, with a main vent connecting a chamber of magma with the surface.
—Arkansas Online, 11 Jan. 2026
Swarms are common near volcanoes and geothermal fields, where underground heat and fluids shift pressure inside the earth’s crust.
—Bay Area News Group, Mercury News, 9 Jan. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for volcanoes
Noun
-
Ray’s most chaotic photograms—jumbles that push out of the frame or look like time bombs ready to explode—find echoes in his films, projected on the back walls, a show in themselves.—
Vince Aletti,
New Yorker,
3 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
Policymakers expect other flash points.—
Alan Greenblatt,
CBS News,
12 Jan. 2026
-
And a handful of standout horror films from around the ’70s, Johnson argues, specifically mirrored and even accelerated feminist flash points at a moment when public opinion regarding the roles and rights of women was wildly in flux.—
Sophie Gilbert,
The Atlantic,
30 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Volcanoes.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/volcanoes. Accessed 26 Jan. 2026.
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