cordite
a smokeless, slow-burning powder composed of 30 to 58 percent nitroglycerin, 37 to 65 percent nitrocellulose, and 5 to 6 percent mineral jelly.
Origin of cordite
1- Also called pyrocellulose.
Words Nearby cordite
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use cordite in a sentence
It’s not even gunshot residue on the hands of your prime suspect, but there is a distinct whiff of cordite in the air which may be suggesting something.
Signs of Life on Venus Hint at Biology Pretty Much Anywhere in the Universe | Jeffrey Kluger | September 15, 2020 | TimeBy now the air in the room was awful, hanging with the smell of cordite, lit only by the muzzle flashes.
Navy Seal Training: The Start of Hell Week | Marcus Luttrell, Patrick Robinson | May 8, 2011 | THE DAILY BEASTIts weight is staggering, and it shoots a solid ball, backed up by a fearful charge of cordite.
In Africa | John T. McCutcheonUp another gangway enough cordite to blow up the whole of Liverpool was being gingerly carried in small cases.
The Relief of Mafeking | Filson YoungHis feet were scorched with burning cordite, and momentarily he released his grip of his enemy's throat, which he had seized.
The Daffodil Mystery | Edgar Wallace
A bursting shell had started a fire among some cordite charges in the casemate.
The Heroic Record of the British Navy | Archibald HurdA high velocity cordite rifle is dangerous to the country people, and some rifle firing black powder should be used.
The Panjab, North-West Frontier Province, and Kashmir | Sir James McCrone Douie
British Dictionary definitions for cordite
/ (ˈkɔːdaɪt) /
any of various explosive materials used for propelling bullets, shells, etc, containing cellulose nitrate, sometimes mixed with nitroglycerine, plasticizers, and stabilizers
Origin of cordite
1Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Scientific definitions for cordite
[ kôr′dīt′ ]
An explosive powder consisting of nitrocellulose, nitroglycerin, and petroleum jelly, used as a propellant for guns. It does not generate smoke and is shaped into cords.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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