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I am an intricate fire,
requited or unattainable.

I rush to break
I compress
Put initiality in front of
what comes after individuality.

I am fleeting
but intense.

I am a vigorous force
upon the heart of any;
I leave a great impact.

You are bound to have encountered me
more than once in life
in more than one form.

I am not anything hot
I am not really fire,
I am not a gas either.
yet I am fire and I do compress.

What on earth am I?

I'm only 13, and I never really tried making a puzzle. This site inspired me to try and form a unique puzzle. I don't know much about puzzles and riddles, and I know that it's a very unkempt attempt. Do correct me, instead of opposing me for my mistakes.

EDIT

The answer to this riddle is a single five-letter English word. The word has several meanings. Only two broad meanings have been explored in this rhyme.

Hints: puberty, compress.

I've narrowed down the problem for you.

Finally, watch out for any red herrings!

EDIT$^2$

I would approve an answer which...

  1. is correct
  2. can demystify all the clues
  3. provide an in-depth, reasonable interpretation of each line

In short, what I want is a solid comprehensive solution.

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5
  • 1
    $\begingroup$ Welcome to Puzzling! I hope you have already taken a tour. Please read the wiki for cryptic clues tag and then decide if it is the right tag here. $\endgroup$
    – Techidiot
    Jan 20, 2017 at 12:08
  • $\begingroup$ Yes, it is. Well, at least I think so. $\endgroup$
    – Soha Farhin Pine
    Jan 20, 2017 at 12:10
  • $\begingroup$ I have edited the tags to include riddle(because clearly, this is a riddle) and removed the cryptic clues tag because these are not cryptic clues. These are indirect references to a certain thing but not cryptic clues.. $\endgroup$
    – Sid
    Jan 20, 2017 at 13:28
  • $\begingroup$ Have some patience before giving hints. Leave your riddle up for a few days before giving any. $\endgroup$
    – mbomb007
    Jan 20, 2017 at 17:40
  • $\begingroup$ This question was already answered, but I was thinking combustion, or internal combustion engine. $\endgroup$
    – Jon Raynor
    Jan 20, 2017 at 20:40

6 Answers 6

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It might be

Crush

Meaning 1:

Noun, infatuation

Meaning 2:

Verb, smash

Explanation:

I am an intricate fire, requited or unattainable.

Clearly meaning 1 I would say. Either the crush is answered (requited) or it isn't (unattainable).

I rush to break

Might be both meanings. A crush can break a heart, but crushing something will typically break it.

I compress

Clearly meaning 2, compress is a synonym of crush

Put initiality in front of what comes after individuality.

Initiality refers to the first letter of the word, C. After individuality (I) comes the word "rush" in the previous line, together they again from the word crush.

I am fleeting but intense.

Meaning 1 again. Having a crush is typically very intense, but passes quite quickly. This could refer to meaning 2 as well as crushing something is intense in that sense as well.

I am a vigorous force upon the heart of any;

This could refer to the force upon the heart of an object, but also to the force upon the heart of a person.

I leave a great impact.

In all forms, a crush leaves a great impact.

You are bound to have encountered me more than once in life in more than one form.

Refers to the several meanings of the word; everyone is bound to have encountered them at some point in their life.

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6
  • $\begingroup$ Ah, that's it! It's just what I was looking for. I accepted your answer. $\endgroup$
    – Soha Farhin Pine
    Jan 20, 2017 at 12:49
  • $\begingroup$ Can you figure out what this means? Put initiality in front of what comes after individuality. $\endgroup$
    – Soha Farhin Pine
    Jan 20, 2017 at 12:52
  • $\begingroup$ Haha, this reminds of that Statler & Waldorf scene... :P I'll see if I can make something of the other lines $\endgroup$
    – Levieux
    Jan 20, 2017 at 13:19
  • $\begingroup$ A very good update... I'm really pleased. $\endgroup$
    – Soha Farhin Pine
    Jan 20, 2017 at 13:28
  • $\begingroup$ Crushed heart can be similar to broken heart. $\endgroup$
    – Techidiot
    Jan 20, 2017 at 13:28
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I have a feeling that it's

gas

Explanation

Thinking of an appropriate explanation for all of the clues

EDIT

It's obviously

crush

But, I refuse to give up without a fight.

So here it goes:

I am an intricate fire,

Well, fire is technically a gas.

requited or unattainable.

Gas is unattainable. In the sense it implies freedom to soar and expand. It cannot be captured. In a poetic sense of course.

I rush to break

Gas will rush to lose its figure or shape once released, hence implying it 'breaks'.

I compress

Gas can be compressed.

Put initiality in front of what comes after individuality.

This is tough..... I don't even understand what the OP is trying to say here. This line makes no sense to me. Could you please confirm this line's meaning Soha?

I am fleeting but intense.

Farts.

I am a vigorous force upon the heart of any; I leave a great impact.

Again, farts!

You are bound to have encountered me more than once in life in more than one form.

Smelly farts. Silent farts. Wet farts. Loud farts.

There. Beat that! :D :P

EDIT 2

Reading Soha's comment on Levieux's answer, two can play at your game madam.

Put initiality in front of what comes after individuality.

In the periodic table, Xenon, a gas, comes after I (Iodine). HAH!

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    $\begingroup$ Lol, all I thought of was natural gas (if you get what I mean) when I first saw your answer. I couldn't stop laughing for possibly about a minute. $\endgroup$
    – Soha Farhin Pine
    Jan 20, 2017 at 12:19
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    $\begingroup$ I am fleeting but intense. I am a vigorous force upon the heart of any; Welllllllllllll.......... :P $\endgroup$
    – Karan Atree
    Jan 20, 2017 at 12:21
  • 1
    $\begingroup$ I've edited the question. Don't delete this answer, however. This could make for a refreshing, healthy dose of entertainment. :-P $\endgroup$
    – Soha Farhin Pine
    Jan 20, 2017 at 12:38
  • 1
    $\begingroup$ The second edit, I've to admit, almost made me stagger. You really have a knack at solving riddles. $\endgroup$
    – Soha Farhin Pine
    Jan 20, 2017 at 14:25
  • 1
    $\begingroup$ Thank you :). The guys here are a huge inspiration! I learn loads everytime I open this website. $\endgroup$
    – Karan Atree
    Jan 20, 2017 at 14:28
2
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You are:

a music album

I am an intricate fire,

An album can be called "fire" if it's particularly good.

requited or unattainable.

Not everyone can afford to buy an album.

I rush to break

An artist wants to break their next album ASAP

I compress

You compress music into different formats: .mp3, .wav, etc.

Put initiality in front of what comes after individuality.

I'm not sure about this part.

I am fleeting

An album usually lasts at most 2 hours, a very fleeting amount of time.

but intense. I am a vigorous force upon the heart of any; I leave a great impact.

A great album can elicit many strong emotions within a person, and greatly influence what someone believes.

You are bound to have encountered me more than once in life in more than one form.

New albums are released all the time. Most people listen to a large amount in their lives. There are many ways to listen. CD, record, concert, etc.

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1
  • $\begingroup$ +1 for such an interesting answer. It's a really good fit in most places, but this is not the answer I was looking for. $\endgroup$
    – Soha Farhin Pine
    Jan 21, 2017 at 4:34
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The Answer

@Leveuix is correct. The answer is

Crush

In-depth Analysis of Selected Lines

1. I rush to break
2. I compress
3. Put initiality in front of what comes after individuality.

To interpret the last line, you will have to carefully observe the lines #1 and #2. It's essentially wordplay:

Initial letter of compress $+$ rush after 'I' (which symbolises individuality) $=$ crush

I am a vigorous force upon the heart of any;

A crush can be described as a force upon a person's heart or an object's (to break/compress it).
(Referring to infatuation) A force upon a person's heart can crush it, as @Techidiot pointed out in a comment. You may be let down/disheartened/depressed (heart may be compressed). One of the many google definitions of crush: bring about a feeling of overwhelming disappointment or embarrassment in (someone). A strong force upon a object's heart can smash it, as well.

I am fleeting but intense.

Infatuations are typically short-lived, but intense. Similarly, it takes little time to crush anything; the effect is strong, nonetheless.

I leave a great impact.

In all its forms, a crush leaves a great impact.

You are bound to have encountered me more than once in life in more than one form.

It tries to imply that that the word crush has multiple meanings. And, everyone is guaranteed to have encountered them at some point or another. All of them are so commonplace.

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    $\begingroup$ Okay, this is a personal opinion and not a site-policy. Self-Answers should not really be given in puzzles unless they aren't solved for months. Here, your puzzle was solved in less than 2 hours and the solver has already explained the lines of the puzzle. I don't see the reason for posting another answer explaining the same lines. Take Care in the future and happy Puzzling!! $\endgroup$
    – Sid
    Jan 20, 2017 at 16:01
  • $\begingroup$ Thanks, and I posted that before Leviex edited his answer. So, it wasn't intentional. $\endgroup$
    – Soha Farhin Pine
    Jan 20, 2017 at 16:26
-1
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Volcano lava

That's the force we are referring to here.

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1
  • $\begingroup$ +1 Good try. But, this is not exactly what I was looking for. $\endgroup$
    – Soha Farhin Pine
    Jan 20, 2017 at 13:50
-3
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The answer is

love

Because

Love is fleeting and intense.

Improve this answer
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    $\begingroup$ Welcome to Puzzling! Can you explain how your answer fits the other lines of the puzzle? $\endgroup$
    – puzzledPig
    Apr 10, 2018 at 3:44

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