combustible
Americanadjective
-
capable of catching fire and burning; inflammable; flammable.
Gasoline vapor is highly combustible.
-
easily excited.
a high-strung, combustible nature.
noun
adjective
-
capable of igniting and burning
-
easily annoyed; excitable
noun
Other Word Forms
- combustibility noun
- combustibleness noun
- combustibly adverb
- uncombustible adjective
Etymology
Origin of combustible
From the Late Latin word combūstibilis, dating back to 1520–30. See combust, -ible
Explanation
Combustible means "able to catch fire," like matches or the extremely dry forest floors that people sometimes forget are combustible — until they go up in flames. When the adjective combustible first entered the English language in the sixteenth century, it was used to describe things that burn easily. The word soon came to apply not only to objects that ignite but also to tempers that are prone to "catch fire" easily. If you’ve ever been around a person who has a combustible temper, you can understand the connection.
Vocabulary lists containing combustible
Automobiles
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100 Great Words from "Fahrenheit 451" -- Part I Vocabulary
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The Great Fire
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
McCraney has a way of drawing the best from actors in tight combustible spaces and Mann has a long history with Fugard.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 17, 2026
Evidence presented at hearings last week showed that government departments failed to effectively address residents' complaints about construction workers smoking on site and the use of combustible building materials during renovations.
From Barron's • Mar. 24, 2026
Queens Park Rangers' demise was less nostalgia-tinged decline and more a combustible two-season spell fuelled by big reputations earning bigger bucks.
From BBC • Mar. 13, 2026
How can UCLA’s combustible coach possibly demand discipline, hold his players responsible, or blame them for failing to take accountability when, night after night, he’s the most unhinged person in the building?
From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 21, 2026
It was difficult to think of the ever-combative, highly combustible champion of the American Revolution as extraneous and invisible, but that is what the vice presidency had made him.
From "Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation" by Joseph J. Ellis
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
