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Synonyms

fan the flames

Idioms  

  1. Intensify or stir up feelings; exacerbate an explosive situation. For example, She already found him attractive, but his letters really fanned the flames, or His speech fanned the flames of racial dissension.

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.

Others worry capping withdrawals will upset investors and fan the flames, so they paid out as much as 15%.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 27, 2026

“We can — we must — speak out loudly, urgently, but also peacefully. We cannot fan the flames of chaos. That’s what he wants,” he wrote.

From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 15, 2026

A host of celebrities have told how they have lost their properties, while officials have warned more high winds could further fan the flames of the wildfires.

From BBC • Jan. 10, 2025

If such a tragedy were to occur, it would just escalate matters and fan the flames of militancy, expand the protest movement, and create more legitimacy problems for both the police and university administrators.

From Salon • May 14, 2024

We hurried through the gate so we wouldn’t be late to Mr. Nossik’s class and fan the flames of hatred for all things Cade Hernandez so early in our week of freedom.

From "100 Sideways Miles" by Andrew Smith

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.