detonate

American

[det-n-eyt] / ˈdɛt nˌeɪt /

verb (used without object)

detonated, detonating

to explode with suddenness and violence.

verb (used with object)

detonated, detonating

to cause (something explosive) to explode.

detonate British

/ ˈdɛtəˌneɪt /

verb

to cause (a bomb, mine, etc) to explode or (of a bomb, mine, etc) to explode; set off or be set off

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

detonability noun
detonable adjective
detonatability noun
detonatable adjective
nondetonating adjective
undetonated adjective

Etymology

Origin of detonate

1720–30; < Latin dētonātus thundered forth (past participle of dētonāre ), equivalent to dē- de- + ton ( āre ) to thunder + -ātus -ate ¹

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.

In these events, an incoming object such as a comet detonates above the ground, releasing intense heat and shockwaves that reach Earth's surface.

From Science Daily

Stress tests assumed falling rates; instead, rates rose and duration risk detonated on bank balance sheets.

From Barron's

No one detonates a room with honesty and irritation quite like Bill Burr, and his latest, “Drop Dead Years,” shows the comedian in his fully evolved form.

From Los Angeles Times

Andrei Sakharov, father of the Soviet Union’s hydrogen bomb and designer of the largest explosive ever detonated on earth, did his part to save the world, too.

From Literature

The US currently uses computer simulations and other non-explosive means to test its nuclear weapons, and therefore does not have a practical justification to detonate them, multiple experts said.

From BBC

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023