Tinderboxes

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A box or container designed for holding flammable materials, often used for starting fires
2. A portable unit that contains items like matches, flint, or dry kindling to ignite flames
3. A metaphor for a situation or environment filled with potential for explosive conflict or danger

Etymology: "Tinderboxes" is simply the plural of "tinderbox," a noun formed from "tinder" and "box." Tinder was the easily ignitable material, typically charred cloth or fungus, that people used to catch a spark from flint and steel and so start a fire. A tinderbox was the small container that kept this tinder, flint, and steel together, a common household item before matches became widespread in the 19th century. The figurative sense follows from that practical object: a place where something dry and flammable waits for only a spark. English has used "tinderbox" in this metaphorical way since at least the 19th century, so a region or household described as a tinderbox is one where conflict or violence could erupt at any moment. The plural simply applies that image to several such places at once.

Synonyms: fire starters, fire kits, flint boxes, ignition kits, fire-making kits