torpedo

American  

[tawr-pee-doh] / tɔrˈpi doʊ /

noun

plural

torpedoes

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.

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

4. 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.

5. 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.

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

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

8. Informal. a hero sandwich.

9. Slang. a gangster hired as a murderer.

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verb (used with object)

torpedoed, torpedoing

1. to attack, hit, damage, or destroy with torpedoes.

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

3. to undermine, ruin, or destroy.

   He torpedoed our plans.

verb (used without object)

torpedoed, torpedoing

1. to attack, damage, or sink a ship with torpedoes.

torpedo British  

/ tɔːˈpiːdəʊ /

noun

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

3. a firework containing gravel and a percussion cap that explodes when dashed against a hard surface

4. a detonator placed on a railway line as a danger signal

5. any of various electric rays of the genus Torpedo

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verb

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

Regionalisms

See hero sandwich.

Other Word Forms

• torpedo-like
  adjective
• torpedolike
  adjective
• untorpedoed
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of torpedo

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

Explanation

A torpedo is a type of missile or bomb fired underwater. To torpedo is to attack with torpedoes. Torpedoes are cigar-shaped projectiles that are used to attack other submarines or boats. The word torpedo comes from the name of a kind of electric ray that numbs you with its sting (torpediniformes). Torpedoes can also be used to attack a target on land. When a submarine fires torpedoes, they're torpedoing the target. Torpedoes explode upon impact, and they're very powerful weapons.

Example Sentences

Following another goalless draw, United were beaten by Torpedo Moscow on penalties, leaving Gary Pallister - who missed the final spot-kick - "sobbing into his shirt".

From BBC • Dec. 25, 2025

Online ravings about “tiger blood” and “winning!” earned him a Live Nation tour with a cry for help as its title: “My Violent Torpedo of Truth/Defeat is Not An Option.”

From Salon • Sep. 12, 2025

The submarine, originally named the Lake, was built by millionaire Simon Lake and his Bridgeport-based Lake Torpedo Boat Company in hopes of winning a competition for a U.S.

From Seattle Times • Apr. 19, 2023

Aytac Cicek, who sells BYDs for the Torpedo Group in Frankfurt, said that customers have been impressed with the overall quality of the vehicles, especially their fast software and high safety ratings.

From New York Times • Feb. 21, 2023

Foremost amongst these stands the Whitehead or Fish Torpedo.

From The Romance of Industry and Invention by Cochrane, Robert

Related Words

• batter
• decimate
• demolish
• destroy
• devastate
• impair
• injure
• mangle
• mar
• ravage
• raze
• ruin
• sabotage
• shatter
• sink
• smash
• spoil
• trash
• undermine
• vandalize