TINDER users have finally discovered the meaning behind the popular dating app’s name and what it used to be called in 2012, when it was first launched.
Tinder is home to a whopping 75million hopeless romantics all around the world – but it’s only now that users have realised the secret meaning behind its name.
Tinder has been around since 2012 – but it’s only now that users have discovered the secret meaning behind the well-known nameCredit: Getty
The app, which prompts users to ‘swipe right’ or ‘left’ to find their ideal match, however, started off with a different name in 2012 – MatchBox.
After realising the name was too similar to another site – Match.com – this soon changed, as its founders, Sean Rad, Justin Mateen and Whitney Wolfe, then decided to go with Tinder.
But why Tinder? And what does it mean? This is something that’s been bothering numerous users online.
Taking to Quora, one confused user asked: “What does the word ‘Tinder’ mean?”
Another user added: “How did the app Tinder get its name?”
According to Brit+Co, the co-founders started brainstorming names similar to MatchBox when they came across Tinder.
A statement reads: ”What started out as Matchbox eventually became Tinder after the founders consulted a thesaurus.
”They stuck with the fire theme, liking the idea that their app could create a romantic spark.”
Explaining this further, one romantic user said: “The word ‘tinder’ refers to the start of a fire, drawing form the procedure of using small items that can be ignited to start things up – another word would be ‘kindling’.
“So then Tinder is the perfect name because a relationship needs small pieces of wood, twigs, branches to get things going.
”Tinder is used to start the fire, but if the fire continues to burn that fire will need more than the kick-start by Tinder.”
Another user added: “The word ‘tinder’ is something that is used to ignite and preserve a fire. Could be kindling, could be some sort of magic gun powder, could be any flammable object or substance.
”So, the association is clear. Tinder is the flammable substance to ignite the flames of sex and love between two people. Clever name.”
