kindling
Americannoun
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Etymology
Origin of kindling
Middle English word dating back to 1250–1300; see origin at kindle 1, -ing 1
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How does kindling compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:
Explanation
The small pieces of wood you use to start a fire are called kindling. When you go camping, you can gather kindling, little twigs and branches, to use in a campfire. Kindling helps a fire get going because it's small and dry, easily flammable. Once the kindling is burning, it can ignite the larger pieces of wood in your fire. You can also use this word to mean "the act of lighting," so you could say, "Kindling this fire is so hard after all that rain we had." Kindling comes from the Old Norse root kynda, "to light a fire."
Vocabulary lists containing kindling
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Hatchet
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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.
An ash tree in my yard dropped a limb and reduced my fence to kindling.
From MarketWatch • Apr. 21, 2026
We matter as much to him as a firestorm cares about kindling.
From Salon • Mar. 20, 2026
It was the excess on show on the social media accounts of politicians' children that provided the kindling for Nepal's Gen Z uprising last year.
From BBC • Feb. 28, 2026
No one questions the need to remove such fast-growing invasives as black mustard, which becomes kindling for wildfires once it dries out in the summer.
From Los Angeles Times • Aug. 9, 2024
In the middle of the bridge stood the pyre—a huge pile of logs, kindling, and hay.
From "The Inquisitor's Tale" by Adam Gidwitz
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.
