powder keg

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

He has described the record as a "powder keg", as "burning diesel", and even a spicy "jambalaya" – and it's certainly harder and faster than anything the band have released over the past decade.

From BBC • Apr. 21, 2026

This in exchange for quickly ignored sanctions, making Iran the powder keg that it was before Feb. 28.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 5, 2026

The career soldier, who in 2021 collaborated with Daglo to oust civilians from a transitional government, wrote on Wednesday: "I long recognised that the RSF was a powder keg."

From Barron's • Nov. 26, 2025

For Crudup, Timothy isn’t a bitter powder keg but a man looking for a little closure, someone who has made peace with the past until the moment he doesn’t get the apology he’s expecting.

From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 7, 2025

The President saw it too and the matter did not amuse him, for he realized it could be the detonator that would set off the powder keg on which his government was delicately perched.

From "The House of the Spirits: A Novel" by Isabel Allende