Chernobyl

American  

[chur-noh-buhl, chyir-naw-bil] / tʃɜrˈnoʊ bəl, tʃjɪrˈnɔ bɪl /

noun

1. a city in northern Ukraine, 80 miles (129 km) northwest of Kyiv: nuclear-plant accident 1986.

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Chernobyl British  

/ tʃɜːˈnəʊbəl, -ˈnɒbəl /

noun

1. a town in N Ukraine; site of a nuclear power station accident in 1986

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Chernobyl Cultural  

1. A place in Ukraine where a nuclear power plant — a generator powered by a nuclear reactor — underwent a meltdown in 1986. A cloud of radioactive gases spread throughout the region of Chernobyl and to foreign countries as well. Forty thousand people living nearby were evacuated. Dozens of deaths and hundreds of illnesses were reported to have been caused by the accident. (Compare Three Mile Island (see also Three Mile Island).)

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Compare meaning

How does chernobyl compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

• Chernobyl vs. Three Mile Island

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

Chernobyl

Appeared in the August 1, 2026, print edition as 'Open Weight and AI’s Coming Chernobyl Moment'.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 31, 2026

It all came together and yielded a little societal Chernobyl.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 30, 2026

Zelensky said they included troops who fought in the bloody battle for Mariupol's steelworks Azovtsal and those who defended Chernobyl, which briefly fell to Moscow at the start of its invasion.

From Barron's ● May 15, 2026

Their apparent beef, which has been speculated about by very online people and, weirdly, business reporters, is now “Weekend Update” fodder, with the women comparing their fight to a “literal Chernobyl for white women.”

From Los Angeles Times ● May 3, 2026

At the time of the Fukushima events, Chernobyl was the only accident to ever rate a level 7.

From "Meltdown" by Deirdre Langeland

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