cluster bomb

American  

noun

1. a canister that can be dropped from an aircraft and that opens to release a number of small fragmentation explosives over a wide area.

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cluster bomb British  

noun

1. a bomb that throws out a number of smaller bombs or antipersonnel projectiles when it explodes

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Etymology

Origin of cluster bomb

First recorded in 1960–65

Example Sentences

But the Commanders are still the same cluster bomb owned by Snyder.

From Washington Post • Oct. 14, 2022

The Pentagon hasn’t dropped a cluster bomb since 2003, but it still sells them.

From Los Angeles Times • May 23, 2016

Indeed, from a pure military perspective, a cluster bomb is ideal.

From US News • Aug. 19, 2015

And when Twitter explodes it is rarely a graceful controlled detonation, it is a cluster bomb of malice.

From The Guardian • May 22, 2013

“I congratulate the fund for divesting the cluster bomb stocks and they probably went further than the bill before Parliament would have required them to do.”

From BusinessWeek • May 3, 2011