I am looking for a phrase or a single word that describes something that burns at a high temperature, like in this sentence:
His temper was volatile and {hot-burning}, like acetone.
"Hot-burning" is the closest thing I can think of, but seems clunky and incorrect.
The military has what they refer to as 'incendiary' grenades, which are partially made from white phosphorus and burn at a rather high temperature.
From the U.S. Army:
[AN-M14 TH3 Incendiary Hand Grenade][1]
The AN-M14 TH3 incendiary hand grenade is used to destroy equipment or start fires. It can also damage, immobilize or destroy vehicles, weapons systems, shelters and munitions.
The grenade filler burns at over 4,000 degrees Fahrenheit and can burn through homogenous steel plate – even underwater. Burn time is 30 to 45 seconds.
(emphasis on the last paragraph my own).
There are many good answers but so as to provide a wider gamut I offer
Scorching which means both very hot and in this context harsh it would generally be used to describe a person who is more than likely to verbally "fly off the handle" without using the more generic scathing that would equally fit but does not mean hot.
His temper was volatile and scorching.
It is synonymous with hot-tempered, fierce and fiery q.v.
You could use incandescent: Merriam-Webster defines it as:
Definition of incandescent (Entry 1 of 2)
1 a : white, glowing, or luminous with intense heat
b : strikingly bright, radiant, or clear
c: marked by brilliance especially of expression incandescent wit
d: characterized by glowing zeal : ARDENT incandescent affection
(see here). It’s also idiomatic to say
incandescent with rage
(see here) so would work well when describing somebody’s temper.
To expand on this, one common use of the word incandescent is in relation to light bulbs. Incandescent light bulbs comprise a wire filament (typically made of tungsten specifically because of its very high melting point) through which an electric current is passed in order to heat it to such a high temperature that it emits visible light. According to Wikipedia the filament reaches 2,000 to 3,300 K (3,140 to 5,480 °F), so potentially hotter than a phosphorous incendiary grenade. Admittedly, the bulb is usually filled with inert gas to prevent oxidation, so it is arguable that the filament does not "burn", but it certainly reaches very high temperatures.
My hesitation regarding incendiary is that it is often used in relation to starting a fire (see, for example, the first definition at Dictionary.com:
- used or adapted for setting property on fire
rather than relating to objects which necessarily burn at high temperatures. This is particularly true in its metaphorical uses (as in your example): an "incendiary comment" might be delivered coolly and calmly but is nonetheless incendiary in that it provokes, or is designed to provoke, a heated response.
As an afterthought, all this talk of fire makes me realise that another word to describe a hot-burning temper would be fiery:
- intensely hot
(Again from Dictionary.com).
Perhaps you can use the word 'flaring' or 'Searing' .
Searing seems to fit the bill perfectly. It means "extremely hot or intense".
Though there are other words suggested here by others such as inflammable / incandescent / scorching, it is not appropriate to use it in your context because you want to refer to the temper of a person in reference to something that burns and not actually referring to the thing itself which burns.
I am looking for a phrase or a single word that describes something that burns at a high temperature,
Practically everything burns at high temperature. Perhaps you meant something that will ignite at relatively low temperature (such as acetone in your example). To describe this, you could use any of the following:
flammable
easily set on fire: the use of highly flammable materials.
-- New Oxford American Dictionary
ignitable
Capable of being set afire, burning, or causing a fire.
-- http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/ignitable.html
combustible
able to catch fire and burn easily: highly combustible paint thinner.
-- New Oxford American Dictionary
and finally your own:
volatile
Evaporates easily. Sometimes also means flammable and/or explosive.
-- http://www.chem.ucla.edu/~harding/IGOC/V/volatile.html
