torpedo

[ tawr-pee-doh ]
See synonyms for: torpedotorpedoedtorpedoestorpedoing on Thesaurus.com

noun,plural tor·pe·does.
  1. a self-propelled, cigar-shaped missile containing explosives and often equipped with a homing device, launched from a submarine or other warship, for destroying surface vessels or other submarines.

  2. any of various submarine explosive devices for destroying hostile ships, as a mine.

  1. a cartridge of gunpowder, dynamite, or the like, exploded in an oil well to facilitate the extraction of oil from the well.

  2. a detonating device fastened to the top of a rail so as to be exploded by the pressure of a locomotive or car, thus giving an audible signal to members of a train crew.

  3. any of various other explosive devices, as a firework that consists of an explosive wrapped up with gravel in a piece of tissue paper and that detonates when thrown forcibly on the ground or against a hard surface.

  4. Also called torpedo fish . an electric ray, especially Torpedo nobiliana, of the Atlantic Ocean.

  5. an electric catfish, Malapterurus electricus, inhabiting waters of tropical central Africa and the Nile valley.

  6. Informal. a hero sandwich.

  7. Slang. a gangster hired as a murderer.

verb (used with object),tor·pe·doed, tor·pe·do·ing.
  1. to attack, hit, damage, or destroy with torpedoes.

  2. to explode a torpedo in (an oil well) to facilitate the extraction of oil.

  1. to undermine, ruin, or destroy: He torpedoed our plans.

verb (used without object),tor·pe·doed, tor·pe·do·ing.
  1. to attack, damage, or sink a ship with torpedoes.

Origin of torpedo

1
1510–20; <Latin torpēdō numbness, torpidity, electric ray, equivalent to torpē(re) to be stiff (see torpid1) + -dō noun suffix

regional variation note For torpedo

8. See hero sandwich.

Other words from torpedo

  • tor·pe·do·like, adjective
  • un·tor·pe·doed, adjective

Words Nearby torpedo

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use torpedo in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for torpedo

torpedo

/ (tɔːˈpiːdəʊ) /


nounplural -does
  1. a cylindrical self-propelled weapon carrying explosives that is launched from aircraft, ships, or submarines and follows an underwater path to hit its target

  2. obsolete a submarine mine

  1. US and Canadian a firework containing gravel and a percussion cap that explodes when dashed against a hard surface

  2. US and Canadian a detonator placed on a railway line as a danger signal

  3. any of various electric rays of the genus Torpedo

verb-does, -doing or -doed (tr)
  1. to hit (a ship, etc) with one or a number of torpedoes

  2. to render ineffective; destroy or wreck: to torpedo the administration's plan

Origin of torpedo

1
C16: from Latin: crampfish (whose electric discharges can cause numbness), from torpēre to be inactive; see torpid

Derived forms of torpedo

  • torpedo-like, adjective

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012