Get me money!' Tinderboxes fell out of general usage when friction matches were invented. while the country's prime minister was meeting with the U.S. president, a political tinderbox was igniting at home. tinderbox (tinderboxes plural), tinder box If you say that a situation is a tinderbox, you mean that it is very tense and something dangerous or unpleasant is likely to happen very soon. Synonyms for tinderbox. / … Adults only (21+) This website contains adult material and is only suitable for those 21 years or older. In the old days, every home had a tinderbox. 1. a dangerous state of affairs; a situation that is a potential source of violence 2. a box for holding tinder Familiarity information: TINDERBOX used as a noun is rare. [5], The tinder pistol, based on the flintlock mechanism, was a more expensive alternative to the tinderbox and was in use in middle and upper class homes in the 18th century. tinder box: Alternative spelling of tinderbox. cotton, linen, or jute) which had previously been charred via pyrolysis, giving it the low ignition temperature and slow burning characteristics suitable for use as tinder. [6] The poorer people working in the fields would obtain a light by simply striking a flint on the back of a knife onto a piece of touch-paper that they carried in their pockets. 2021. exclaimed the Soldier. Please tell us where you read or heard it (including the quote, if possible). Learn more. a box for holding tinder, usually fitted with a flint and steel. For instance, a prison in which there is unrest and the potential for a riot could be said to be 'a tinderbox of violence'. In the early 19th century a more efficient tinderbox was invented with a rotating metal wheel to create the sparks[4] and there were other more experimental devices available, such as the fire piston and the instantaneous light box. 1 a : a metal box for holding tinder and usually a flint and steel for striking a spark. situation - a complex or critical or unusual difficulty; "the dangerous situation developed suddenly"; "that's quite a situation"; "no human situation is simple". tinderbox definition: 1. a dangerous and uncontrolled situation in which violence is likely to happen: 2. a dangerous…. 'What's the meaning of this?' [11], In conventional usage, the term "tinderbox" refers to something that is so dry that it could catch on fire with the slightest provocation, perhaps even spontaneously like a forest fire. [2], The charcloth was fabric made from vegetable fibre (e.g. Throughout prehistoric Europe flint and iron pyrites (commonly known as fool's gold) were struck against one another in order to create a spark for firelighting. tinderbox (n.) also tinder-box, "box in which tinder and flint are kept," 1520s, from tinder + box (n.); figurative sense of " 'inflammable' person or thing" is attested from 1590s. that can be used to start a fire quickly. [12], Container for fire-starting materials with flint, firesteel, and tinder, Methods of making fire, Oxford University, Native American use of fire in ecosystems, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Tinderbox&oldid=1015981206, Short description is different from Wikidata, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, This page was last edited on 4 April 2021, at 18:38. Meaning and definitions of tinderbox, translation of tinderbox in Tamil language with similar and opposite words. ‘The Tinderbox’ is one of the fairy tales by Hans Christian Andersen. Tinder definition, a highly flammable material or preparation formerly used for catching the spark from a flint and steel struck together for fire or light. ‘food riots were a potential tinderbox in the city’ ‘And, a three-year drought has turned forests and swamps to tinderboxes.’ ‘Everyone knew the stand was a … The king could not refuse this request, so the soldier took his tinder-box, and struck fire, once, twice, thrice,—and there in a moment stood all the dogs;—the one with eyes as big as teacups, the one with eyes as large as mill-wheels, and the third, whose eyes were like towers. His debut collection, 'These Wild Houses', was shortlisted for the Judith Wright Calanthe Award and the Kenneth Slessor Prize. Tinder box he cried to the crowded prison as a tinderbox can also be a dangerous. 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