noun

kindling

KIHND-lihng

noun

Small sticks, twigs, or other easily burnable material used to start a fire.

"He gathered kindling before lighting the fireplace."

"Dry kindling catches much faster than damp logs."

How to Use Kindling

Learner’s notes

In plain EnglishThe small, easily lit material — twigs, dry leaves, thin sticks — used to get a fire going before adding bigger logs.

Common pairings

gather kindling dry kindling a bundle of kindling

more kindling comparative, kindlings plural, most kindling superlative

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Can you complete this real example?

He gathered _____ before lighting the fireplace.

From "kindle" plus the suffix "-ing," describing the material used for kindling a fire.

dwindling swindling