tinderboxes

noun

Definition of tinderboxesnext
plural of tinderbox
1
as in volcanoes
a potentially explosive place or situation officials sought to calm the situation, which had grown into a tinderbox

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance
2
as in crises
a time or state of affairs requiring prompt or decisive action while the country's prime minister was meeting with the U.S. president, a political tinderbox was igniting at home

Synonyms & Similar Words

Examples Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for tinderboxes
  1. volcanoes
  2. crises
  3. crossroads
Noun
  • Extinct volcanoes are already mined for their iron ore, diamond and copper, but the process may be modified to mine for REE as well.
    Devika Rao, theweek, 1 Oct. 2024
  • Metallic volcanos Volcanoes that have long been dormant may be filled with rare earth elements (REE), according to a study published in the journal Geochemical Perspectives Letters.
    Devika Rao, theweek, 1 Oct. 2024
Definition of volcanoes
Noun
  • An Incident Command System is a standardized protocol for managing crises efficiently.
    Tyler Shepherd, USA TODAY, 4 Oct. 2024
  • Through his wife who also worked at the school, Joe provided valuable insights into how the school was lacking critical procedures that can prevent or mitigate crises.
    Tyler Shepherd, USA TODAY, 4 Oct. 2024
Definition of crises
Noun
  • But at this particular political crossroads, Felix’s motherhood is central to her story.
    Macaela MacKenzie, Glamour, 3 Oct. 2024
  • Its extremely rich program at the crossroads of art forms and audiences attracts more than 3 million visitors every year.
    The Editors of ARTnews, ARTnews.com, 3 Oct. 2024
Definition of crossroads
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Thesaurus Entries Near tinderboxes

tinderbox

tinderboxes

tine

See More Nearby Entries 

Cite this Entry

“Tinderboxes.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/tinderboxes. Accessed 22 Nov. 2024.

Copy Citation

Share

More from Merriam-Webster on tinderboxes

Nglish: Translation of tinderboxes for Spanish Speakers

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See All

How to Use Em Dashes (—), En Dashes (–) , and Hyphens (-)

Plural and Possessive Names: A Guide

The Difference Between 'i.e.' and 'e.g.'

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?
See All

Popular in Wordplay

See All

8 Words with Fascinating Histories

8 Words for Lesser-Known Musical Instruments

Birds Say the Darndest Things

10 Words from Taylor Swift Songs (Merriam's Version)

10 Scrabble Words Without Any Vowels
See All

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Word Game Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
turkey-looking-at-camera
Giving Thanks Quiz Decide which words express gratitude and which gi...