tinderboxes
Boxes holding kindling
Tinderboxes is the plural of tinderbox, a small container holding tinder and flint for starting fires—essential before matches existed.
The figurative sense dominates modern usage: a volatile situation ready to ignite.
A region, relationship, or political climate can be a tinderbox: The prison was a tinderbox waiting to explode.
Volatile, dangerous situation
- flashpointIgnition temperature threshold
- tensionsStates of strained relations
- unrestState of public disturbance
- instabilityTendency toward unpredictable change
explosive · conflict zone · hotspot · crisis · simmering · upheaval · turmoil · eruption
Spark-producing sedimentary rock
- steelCarbon-hardened iron alloy
- matchesPairs that align
- punkRaw, fast rock genre
- sparkTiny fiery particle
combustible · fire steel · sulfur · birch bark · fatwood · jute · cotton · striker
powder keg
Volatile, dangerous situation
- flashpointIgnition temperature threshold
- tensionsStates of strained relations
- unrestState of public disturbance
instability · explosive · conflict zone · hotspot · crisis · simmering · upheaval · turmoil · eruption · spark
flint
Spark-producing sedimentary rock
spark · combustible · fire steel · sulfur · birch bark · fatwood · jute · cotton · striker · ignition
Victorian
Of a prim era
portable · 18th century · fireplace · hearth · household · lamp lighting · candle · colonial · Georgian · flintlock
- danger zonesdanger zone, danger zones, disaster zone, war zone, war zones
tinderboxesextinguishers
Devices that quell flames
wet blankets · firebreaks · fire retardants · dampeners · ice chests
tinderboxessafe havens
Protected places from harm
sanctuaries · demilitarized zones · havens · refuges · buffer states
tinderboxesfire extinguishers
Devices for dousing flames
fire blankets · sprinkler systems · water buckets · fire hoses · fire retardants