delayed-action

American  

[dih-leyd-ak-shuhn] / dɪˈleɪdˈæk ʃən /

Also delay-action

adjective

1. (of an explosive projectile) exploding some time after hitting the target.

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delayed action British  

noun

1. 1. a device for operating a mechanism, such as a camera shutter, a short time after setting

   2. ( as modifier )

      a delayed-action fuse

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Etymology

Origin of delayed-action

First recorded in 1890–95

Example Sentences

In a delayed-action scenario, debt in 2050-51 would be 23% of GDP higher than in the early-action scenario, it said.

From Reuters • Jul. 6, 2021

Mr. Lewis remembers the devastation of delayed-action explosive devices left by the Germans and the “slag heap” from the eruption of Vesuvius, just southeast of Naples, in March 1944.

From New York Times • Nov. 28, 2017

One person close to the family described her influence as a delayed-action fuse: at times the president will mention a point Ms. Trump made, uncredited, days later.

From New York Times • Apr. 15, 2017

Unless his speech had a delayed-action detonator, Harry Truman might soon have to decide where and how far to make his first backward step.

From Time Magazine Archive

Dad set up a still camera on a tripod, connected the delayed-action attachment, and took a series of pictures showing us lowering the coffin into the grave and covering it with sand.

From "Cheaper by the Dozen" by Frank B. Gilbreth Jr. and Ernestine Gilbreth Carey