flashpoint

Noun

flash point (plural flash points)

1. The lowest temperature at which a liquid can form an ignitable mixture in air near the surface of the liquid.
   • The whole cursed corporation ought to be rooted out and drowned in its own incombustible product. What is the flash point of this condemned coal oil anyway?1916, Peter McArthur, In Pastures Green
2. (figuratively) A hotspot; a dangerous place of violent political unrest.
   • This strategic outcrop is home to a handful of derelict buildings once used to house US military personnel. But it has become a new flashpoint in the global rivalry between Beijing and Washington, as the US struggles to develop a coherent strategy to deal with China’s rising influence in Latin...2018 November 29, Mat Youkee, “Panama the new flashpoint in China's growing presence in Latin America”, in The Guardian

   Synonyms:

   hot spot, trouble spot

3. The critical stage in some process, event, or situation at which action, change, or violence occurs
   • The attack could prove the flashpoint for war.