tinder
Americannoun
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a highly flammable material or preparation formerly used for catching the spark from a flint and steel struck together for fire or light.
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any dry substance that readily takes fire from a spark.
noun
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dry wood or other easily combustible material used for lighting a fire
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anything inflammatory or dangerous
his speech was tinder to the demonstrators' unrest
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of tinder
before 900; Middle English; Old English tynder; akin to German Zunder, Old Norse tundr, Old English -tendan (as in ātendan to set on fire), Gothic tundnan to catch fire, German -zünden in entzünden to kindle
Compare meaning
How does tinder compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:
Explanation
Tinder is one of the things you need to start a fire — it's the extremely dry stuff, like wood or paper, that catches easily and helps get your fire going. To build a campfire, you need both logs and tinder. You might also call tinder kindling. This material is so dry and flammable that it quickly catches on fire and burns long enough to ignite the larger pieces of wood in your fireplace or outdoor fire pit. The word stems from the Old English tynder, from a Proto-Germanic root meaning "ignite" or "kindle."
Vocabulary lists containing tinder
Inferno Lingo: Fire Vocabulary
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Unit 1: Telling Details
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"Uprising," Vocabulary from the historical novel
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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.
"Everything is tinder dry and when you've got a wind behind that, and we've got a source of ignition, it will spread beyond what people could even recognise," he said.
From BBC ● Aug. 20, 2026
He blamed the rapid spread on "tinder dry" conditions and said the "devastation is extensive".
From Barron's ● Aug. 14, 2026
This article was the tinder we needed in my Saturday group where we typically have three to four foursomes playing a team game.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 5, 2026
Blankfein added that the long period without a financial crisis cleansing process meant ”you accumulate tinder on the floor of the forest and eventually a spark will come.
From MarketWatch ● Mar. 26, 2026
The stomach would make a waterskin; the bladder a spare tinder pouch; the Hilts would store nuts.
From "Wolf Brother" by Michelle Paver
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.
