inflammable

[ in-flam-uh-buhl ]
See synonyms for inflammable on Thesaurus.com
adjective
  1. capable of being set on fire; combustible; flammable.

  2. easily aroused or excited, as to passion or anger; irascible: an inflammable disposition.

noun
  1. something inflammable.

Origin of inflammable

1
1595–1605; <Medieval Latin inflammābilis, equivalent to Latin inflammā(re) to inflame + -bilis-ble

confusables note For inflammable

Inflammable and flammable both mean “combustible.” Inflammable is the older by about 200 years. Flammable now has certain technical uses, particularly as a warning on vehicles carrying combustible materials, because of a belief that some might interpret the intensive prefix in- of inflammable as a negative prefix and thus think the word means “noncombustible.” Inflammable is the word more usually used in nontechnical and figurative contexts: The speaker ignited the inflammable emotions of the crowd.

Other words for inflammable

Other words from inflammable

  • in·flam·ma·bil·i·ty, in·flam·ma·ble·ness, noun
  • in·flam·ma·bly, adverb
  • non·in·flam·ma·bil·i·ty, noun
  • non·in·flam·ma·ble, adjective
  • non·in·flam·ma·ble·ness, noun
  • non·in·flam·ma·bly, adverb
  • un·in·flam·ma·bil·i·ty, noun
  • un·in·flam·ma·ble, adjective

Words that may be confused with inflammable

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

British Dictionary definitions for inflammable

inflammable

/ (ɪnˈflæməbəl) /


adjective
  1. liable to catch fire; flammable

  2. readily aroused to anger or passion

noun
  1. something that is liable to catch fire

inflammable

Derived forms of inflammable

  • inflammability or inflammableness, noun
  • inflammably, adverb

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012