Kindle

How to spell kindle

6 letters · 2 syllables

How to pronounce kindle

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does kindle mean?

1. verbTo set something on fire or cause it to begin burning.
2. verbTo arouse or stir up a strong feeling, interest, or reaction in someone.

Kindle in a sentence

• Dry twigs and a single match were enough to kindle the campfire.

• The documentary helped kindle public interest in the old railway.

• He used crumpled newspaper to kindle the logs in the wood stove.

• A good teacher can kindle a lifelong love of reading.

Where does kindle come from?

Language of origin: Old Norse

Kindle came into English from Old Norse, where the verb kynda meant 'to set fire to' or 'to light', and was closely tied to kyndill, a word for a torch or candle. Norse settlers brought it to northern England, and by the 1200s it had settled into Middle English as kindlen, meaning to set something burning. From that very physical sense of lighting a fire, the word soon stretched into the figurative meaning of stirring up a strong feeling, so one could kindle hope, anger, or interest just as one kindled flames. The spelling preserves the soft -dle ending common to many old verbs of action, which is the part writers most often have to think about. It is unrelated, despite appearances, to the similar-looking 'kindred', whose resemblance is purely coincidental.

How the word is built

• kindl- (from Old Norse kynda: to set fire to)
• -le (verb-forming ending)