atomic
Americanadjective
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of, pertaining to, resulting from, or using atoms, atomic energy, or atomic bombs.
an atomic explosion.
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propelled or driven by atomic energy.
an atomic submarine.
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Chemistry. existing as free, uncombined atoms.
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extremely minute.
adjective
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of, using, or characterized by atomic bombs or atomic energy
atomic warfare
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of, related to, or comprising atoms
atomic hydrogen
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extremely small; minute
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logic (of a sentence, formula, etc) having no internal structure at the appropriate level of analysis. In predicate calculus, Fa is an atomic sentence and Fx an atomic predicate
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Relating to an atom or to atoms.
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Employing nuclear energy.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of atomic
Explanation
Something that has to do with atoms is atomic. Atomic structure, for example, means the way an atom is organized and what it's made of. You'll often find the word atomic specifically describing power or weapons — in this case, atomic means the process of either splitting an atom, known as fission, or joining two atoms, fusion, to create energy. Also, every chemical element has its own atomic number, which is the number of protons in the nucleus of one of the element's atoms. Atomic comes from the Latin atomus, "indivisible particle," from the Greek atomos, "uncut" or "indivisible."
Vocabulary lists containing atomic
August Words
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Week 1 Spelling
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STAAR U.S. History 3
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Advances in atomic clock technology may now change that.
From Science Daily • May 18, 2026
For minerals you could imagine the “gravel” to be atomic elements, the “bucket” to be a cosmic cloud where atoms can bind into molecules and the feature of interest being chemical stability.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 15, 2026
Each cluster also had a mass exceeding 170,000 atomic mass units, making them heavier than most proteins.
From Science Daily • May 11, 2026
The Wende Museum in Culver City opened its doors in 2017 inside a former 1949 atomic bomb shelter.
From Los Angeles Times • May 10, 2026
Their job was to beat Hitler in the race to make the world’s first atomic bomb.
From "Fallout: Spies, Superbombs, and the Ultimate Cold War Showdown" by Steve Sheinkin
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
