(n.) A small particle of fire or ignited substance which is emitted by a body in combustion.
(n.) A small, shining body, or transient light; a sparkle.
(n.) That which, like a spark, may be kindled into a flame, or into action; a feeble germ; an elementary principle.
(n.) A brisk, showy, gay man.
(n.) A lover; a gallant; a beau.
(v. i.) To sparkle.
(v. i.) To play the spark, beau, or lover.
Example Sentences:
(1) But the Franco-British spat sparked by Dave's rejection of Angela and Nicolas's cunning plan to save the euro has been given wings by news the US credit agencies may soon strip France of its triple-A rating and is coming along very nicely, thank you. "
(2) Gove said in the interview that he did not want to be Tory leader, claiming that he lacked the "extra spark of charisma and star quality" possessed by others.
(3) The "Dream Toys" for Christmas list includes a few old favourites alongside some new, and sparkly, additions.
(4) The countries have accused each other of cross-border attacks and there are fears the current tension could spark a wider war with Nkunda at its centre.
(5) The cost-cutting shakeup is being overseen by NHS England, but is already sparking a series of local political battles over the future of services, and exposes the health secretary, Jeremy Hunt, to fresh criticism after his controversial role in the junior doctors dispute.
(6) The army has said it will deploy troops on the streets on that day, while the president says he may introduce a state of emergency if, as expected, the protests spark widespread civil unrest.
(7) The protests have sparked an exodus of Chinese nationals, many of whom have fled to neighbouring countries or further.
(8) Increased wear-resistance of microsurgical instruments by facing, electric spark alloying and vacuum surfacing increases the working life of the instruments by 1.5-3 times.
(9) It was sparked by Ferguson's decision to sue Magnier over the lucrative stud fees now being earned by retired racehorse Rock of Gibraltar, which the Scot used to co-own.
(10) I think it would have been appropriate and right and respectful of people’s feelings to have done so.” There was also confusion over Labour policy sparked by conflicting comments made by Corbyn and his new shadow work and pensions secretary, Owen Smith.
(11) He was the peaceful activist whose sudden disappearance into a phalanx of riot police on a Baltimore street sparked a viral panic.
(12) The incident in Aswan that sparked Sunday's protest was an attack on a church that attackers claimed was being built illegally.
(13) The amendment has sparked a particular backlash against the senator widely regarded as responsible for the decision, Ahmed Yerima, who is reported to have married a 13-year old Egyptian girl.
(14) We have designated this phenomenon the sparking of growth, in which cholestanol satisfies an overall membrane sterol requirement and ergosterol fulfills a high specificity sparking function.
(15) Despite reasonable evidence suggesting the plot letter is a hoax , it has sparked debate in the city, with far right groups looking to capitalise while some prominent Muslims claim the allegations are baseless and rooted in Islamophobia.
(16) As the later Spark might have said, a mortal sin against the commandment to love beauty wherever one may find it.
(17) Griffin vowed to lodge a complaint at the "unfair" way the Question Time programme was produced, despite the BNP's claims that his appearance sparked the "biggest single recruitment night in the party's history".
(18) He claimed the blaze was sparked by overheated cables setting light to stacks of toilet roll.
(19) Some of the world’s largest investment firms have thrown their weight behind efforts to combat smoking, sparking renewed calls for UK local authorities to divest all their shares in the tobacco industry from their pension fund investments.
(20) The results surpassed all expectations and the change process has instilled a new sense of pride among nurses at the hospital and sparked the development of training sessions for other nurses in the region.
Squib
Definition:
(a.) A little pipe, or hollow cylinder of paper, filled with powder or combustible matter, to be thrown into the air while burning, so as to burst there with a crack.
(a.) A kind of slow match or safety fuse.
(a.) A sarcastic speech or publication; a petty lampoon; a brief, witty essay.
(a.) A writer of lampoons.
(a.) A paltry fellow.
(v. i.) To throw squibs; to utter sarcatic or severe reflections; to contend in petty dispute; as, to squib a little debate.
Example Sentences:
(1) It’s a damp squib, a bit of a nothing result,” a leading energy analyst said of a report that is widely expected to endorse provisional findings released in March , and recommend price controls on prepayment meters and setting up a customer database to help rival suppliers target customers stuck on expensive default tariffs.
(2) UK watchdog accused of bowing to pressure from 'big six' energy suppliers Read more However, it was not temporary precipitation that meant the CMA produced a damp squib but months of ferocious lobbying by the big six to ensure the industry is left largely in its existing state.
(3) Not only doesn’t Australia, as a nation, possess these protections, but the Coalition government is actively opposed to their implementation, while Labor squibbed the opportunity to do something about it in 2010.
(4) But their great offensive has been a damp squib, consisting mostly of lecturing greens that we can’t “turn off fossil fuels overnight”.
(5) Yet in the peace-giving west, the award remains significantly venerated – a testament, surely, to being a dynamite idea in principle (if you'll forgive the cliched reference to Alfred Nobel's other gift to the world ) but a mostly damp squib in practice.
(6) Gordon Brown's long awaited measures to help people struggling with soaring gas and electricity bills may have been derided as a bit of damp squib, but at least there are grants out there to help you insulate your home.
(7) 4.36pm BST Markets close European markets have nearly all closed up, except for the FTSE after a handful or blue chip firms went ex-dividend today FTSE 100 down 15 points (0.2%) at 6579 DAX up 16 points (0.2%) at 8432 CAC up 22 points (0.6%) at 4115 FTSE MIB up 83 points (0.5%) at 17463 IBEX up 31 points (0.4%) at 8783 4.00pm BST Michael Hewson, senior market analysts at CMC Markets, says the end of the EU recession is a damp squib which has shown up the disparity between France, Germany and the rest of the continent.
(8) Alternatively, there are fears that the authorities have left it too late for quantative easing and that it will prove another damp squib.
(9) "With the budget a damp squib, the economy faltering and the NHS reforms becoming more unpopular each and every day, marchers will have returned home determined to step up their democratic campaign against policies that neither government party put before the electorate at the last election."
(10) Paul Turner-Mitchell, a business rates expert, said the autumn statement had been “terrible” for retailers, with increasing signs that a review of the commercial property tax would prove a damp squib.
(11) Brown's closest ministerial ally, Ed Balls, said the email was a "damp squib" by a few disgruntled MPs and insisted that the cabinet was "absolutely united" behind Brown.But the number of cabinet voices emerging in support of Brown did not begin to rise to a chorus until early evening, among them two of the ministers tipped as possible successors to Brown – the home secretary, Alan Johnson, and the energy secretary, Ed Miliband, who said today's call by rebels would be seen as a "temporary distraction" from the job of fighting the Conservatives and laying out future plans for the country.
(12) Ishaq Siddiqi , market strategist at ETX Capital, says shares have been trading in a 'narrow range' in European markets, ahead of tonight's fireworks (or damp squibs) from Ben Bernanke .
(13) Yet somehow her campaign launched as if a damp squib was the height of her ambition.
(14) According to Chris Prior: Whilst I'd probably get lynched for saying this within the confines of my office (working for a major bookmaker and surrounded by England fans): I can't help but think that another damp-squib of a 0-0 draw and subsequent exit would be nearly as funny as the fallout from England 2-3 Croatia, especially given the amount of trust and belief that people have invested in Fabio Capello this time around (and the usual argument of the over-inflated ego's of the overpaid players of the "EPL").
(15) Gillard described Abbott’s motion as a “damp squib” 4.02am GMT 'We will fight and fight and fight' Julia Gillard declares in the House of Representatives: We will fight and fight and fight and when the election is held in September we will prevail because the choice will be so clear and the right path for a stronger future will be so clear too.
(16) If one does in the coming hours, then what Brown's allies were happy to call a damp squib will spark back to potentially lethal life.
(17) The Clash, Give 'Em Enough Rope (Columbia, 1978) In an ideal world, the Clash's discography would hop from their eponymous debut to their masterpiece, London's Calling, but in between lurks this notorious damp squib.
(18) The Hindustan Times felt that "without a legally binding document, the summit turned into a damp squib".
(19) Brexit negotiator warns Donald Trump poses 'third threat' to EU Read more However, a senior Lib Dem source said there was “no chance” of getting any substantial amendments passed with cross-party support and the debate was likely to be a “damp squib”.
(20) Europe's day of protest is intended as a show of union power staging a comeback, but may prove a noisy damp squib, a demonstration of angry impotence.