Definition
To start a fire burning, or to cause a feeling or idea to grow stronger.
Example
A kind word can kindle hope in a difficult time.
Show translation
A kind word can kindle hope in a difficult time.
Etymology
From Old Norse *kynda* ("to set fire to") and Old English *cyndelæcan*, both rooted in Proto-Germanic *kindilaz*. By the 13th century it had broadened in English to cover figurative flames — passions, curiosity, and conflict — as well as literal ones.
Cultural note
The word appears famously in the phrase "to kindle a spark," a metaphor so embedded in English that it stretches from Shakespeare (*"kindle the boy's spirit"*) to modern motivational writing. Amazon named its e-reader the Kindle partly to evoke the kindling of a love for reading. On the U.S. Independence Day (July 4th), the word fits naturally alongside fireworks and the idea of a nation's founding ideals being "kindled" by its founders.