tinder
n. uncountablen. dry material that catches fire very easily. You use it to start a campfire, often using small twigs or dry grass.
n. dry, flammable material used for igniting a fire. Often refers to organic matter such as dried leaves, wood shavings, or charred cloth that responds to a spark.
We gathered dry leaves to use as tinder for the campfire.
Before the sun set, the hikers collected a handful of birch bark to serve as tinder.
The forest floor was covered in a thick layer of pine needles, providing perfect tinder for a lightning strike to ignite a massive wildfire.
From Middle English tinder, tunder, tender, tonder, from Old English tynder, from Proto-Germanic tundrą, tundrǭ (“tinder”). Compare Saterland Frisian Tunder (“tinder”), Dutch tonder (“tinder”), German Zunder (“tinder”), Swedish tända (“to light, to set on fire”). More at tind.
Uncountable in its general sense; occasionally used metaphorically to describe a volatile situation.