1
: a very flammable substance adaptable for use as kindling
2
: something that serves to incite or inflame
that rhetoric was ready tinder for revolution—
Margaret Peters
Margaret PetersExamples of tinder in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
House Speaker Mike Johnson, speaking with reporters on Friday, tried to navigate a way out of this mess without any new tinder.
—Philip Elliott, Time, 6 June 2025
No more worrying about gathering tinder or kindling in the dark.
—Alice Bennett, Travel + Leisure, 29 May 2025
Dryer, hotter weather in Russia, exacerbated by climate change, create tinder box conditions that can cause a small fire to spread rapidly.
—Caitlin Danaher, CNN Money, 14 May 2025
Heavy rain last winter fueled dense plant growth in Southern California, then a prolonged drought beginning in October dried out the new brush, creating tinder for wildfires.
—Nidhi Sharma, NBC News, 6 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for tinder
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Philip Elliott, Time, 6 June 2025
No more worrying about gathering tinder or kindling in the dark.
—Alice Bennett, Travel + Leisure, 29 May 2025
Dryer, hotter weather in Russia, exacerbated by climate change, create tinder box conditions that can cause a small fire to spread rapidly.
—Caitlin Danaher, CNN Money, 14 May 2025
Heavy rain last winter fueled dense plant growth in Southern California, then a prolonged drought beginning in October dried out the new brush, creating tinder for wildfires.
—Nidhi Sharma, NBC News, 6 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for tinder
Cite this Entry
“Tinder.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/tinder. Accessed 10 Jun. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
tinder
noun
tin·der
ˈtin-dər 
: a material that burns easily and can be used as kindling
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