tinderbox

tinderbox
tinderbox "box in which tinder and flint are kept," 1520s, from TINDER (Cf. tinder) + BOX (Cf. box) (n.); fig. sense of " 'inflammable' person or thing" is attested from 1590s.

Etymology dictionary. 2014.

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  • tinderbox — ► NOUN historical ▪ a box containing tinder, flint, a steel, and other items for kindling fires …   English terms dictionary

  • tinderbox — [tin′dərbäks΄] n. 1. Obs. a metal box for holding tinder, flint, and steel for starting a fire 2. any highly flammable object, structure, etc. 3. a place or situation likely to be the source of a flare up of trouble, war, etc …   English World dictionary

  • Tinderbox — Historically, a tinderbox is a small container containing flint, firesteel, and tinder (typically charcloth, but possibly a small quantity of dry, finely divided fibrous matter such as straw), used together to help kindle a fire. Tinderboxes fell …   Wikipedia

  • tinderbox — UK [ˈtɪndə(r)ˌbɒks] / US [ˈtɪndərˌbɑks] noun [countable] Word forms tinderbox : singular tinderbox plural tinderboxes 1) a situation or place that could suddenly become extremely violent or dangerous 2) in the past, a small box used for holding… …   English dictionary

  • tinderbox — /tin deuhr boks /, n. 1. a box for holding tinder, usually fitted with a flint and steel. 2. a person or thing that is highly excitable, explosive, inflammable, etc.; a potential source of widespread violence: Berlin was the tinderbox of Europe.… …   Universalium

  • tinderbox — tin|der|box [ˈtındəbɔks US dərba:ks] n 1.) [C usually singular] a place or situation that is dangerous and where there could suddenly be a lot of fighting or problems ▪ The area is a tinderbox that could again plunge the country into civil war. 2 …   Dictionary of contemporary English

  • tinderbox — [[t]tɪ̱ndə(r)bɒks[/t]] tinderboxes also tinder box N COUNT: usu sing If you say that a situation is a tinderbox, you mean that it is very tense and something dangerous or unpleasant is likely to happen very soon …   English dictionary

  • tinderbox — noun 1 (countable usually singular) a place or situation that is dangerous and where there could suddenly be a lot of fighting or problems: Racial tension was high, and the southern states were a real tinderbox. 2 (C) a box containing things… …   Longman dictionary of contemporary English

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