as in to burn
to set (something) on fire
see if you can enkindle some paper in the fireplace while I look for logs
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for enkindle
Verb
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If humans opt to burn more fossil fuels and increase climate pollution, that number drops to just four.—
Laura Paddison,
CNN Money,
10 Feb. 2026 -
The reasons in this case, Dunn said, include the emissions released by the new compressors — which would be powered by burning gas from the pipeline — as well the noise and vibrations produced by the facility.—
John Moritz,
Hartford Courant,
9 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Meanwhile, Rihanna has been busy building her lingerie empire, Savage X Fenty, and collaborating with Jahleel Weaver to create a portfolio of show-stopping looks and a maternity style that’s ignited its own fashion movement.—
Kaleigh Werner,
Footwear News,
14 Feb. 2026
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Some Israeli hostages, taken during Hamas’ October 7, 2023, attack on southern Israel that ignited the war, have said they were held at Nasser Hospital, the largest in southern Gaza.—
Reuters,
NBC news,
14 Feb. 2026
Verb
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There’s a slender streak of humor, dry and combustible as kindling, in the film’s exploration of this absurd domestic setup, which lays out the rigid expectations of women and men alike in a punishingly conservative society.—
Guy Lodge,
Variety,
15 Feb. 2026
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If ‘Oxen’ occupies a region of Ulysses where Joyce’s exquisite ear for memorably musical sentences (‘Mild fire of wine kindled his veins’) takes a back seat to the leaden hum of meta-literature, that is no reason not to be awed by his chutzpah.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
5 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Simpler cooking, community…and Nico Ruspoli, an olive oil producer with his own scorched past.—
Danielle Parker,
CBS News,
7 Feb. 2026
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The hard X-ray peak came first, intense and quickly, followed by a longer, scorching soft X-ray and optical glow.—
Paul Sutter,
Space.com,
6 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Such an experience would be memorable and inflame an intense desire.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
13 Feb. 2026
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Maegan Ortiz, executive director of the Institute of Popular Education of Southern California, or IDEPSCA, cited the LAPD’s history of using excessive force against civilians and said that in the recent immigration raids, officers have sometimes inflamed instead of defused tensions.—
Melissa Gomez,
Los Angeles Times,
11 Feb. 2026
Verb
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These fruits are tiny stars, planets in arm’s reach, little moons reddened by desire and cunning, the sun, at each step, illumines the petals of the dogwood flowers, their bright yellow is dimmed by no leaf, on their still-bare branches the first fissure in winter opens up by magic.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
19 May 2025
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Rev 21:10), an ark of salvation sailing through the waters of history and a beacon that illumines the dark nights of this world.—
Daniel Burke,
NPR,
9 May 2025
Verb
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November 22 – December 21 Sagittarius, your spark lights the path ahead.—
Tarot.com,
Hartford Courant,
10 Feb. 2026
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Ella Morgan lit the lamp twice and assisted on the other goal for King Philip, leading a 3-1 nonleague win over Martha’s Vineyard.—
Brendan Connelly,
Boston Herald,
10 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Payne intentionally fired four rounds at 25-year-old Kierra Lane, killing her at her Covington home with the pair's children present, prosecutors said at trial.—
Quinlan Bentley,
Cincinnati Enquirer,
10 Feb. 2026
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Payton’s longtime assistant, Lombardi was fired a few days after the Broncos’ AFC Championship Game loss.—
Jeff Zrebiec,
New York Times,
9 Feb. 2026
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Cite this Entry
“Enkindle.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/enkindle. Accessed 16 Feb. 2026.
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