detonation
Americannoun
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the act of detonating.
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an explosion.
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Machinery. the premature spontaneous burning of a fuel–air mixture in an internal-combustion engine due to the high temperature of air compressed in a cylinder.
Other Word Forms
- detonative adjective
Etymology
Origin of detonation
1670–80; < Medieval Latin dētonātiōn- (stem of dētonātiō ), equivalent to Latin dētonāt ( us ) ( detonate ) + -iōn- -ion
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.
A Thursday morning detonation killed one person in a Simi Valley home, and a similar incident critically injured two people in a Bay Area residence where officials suspect fireworks were being manufactured.
From Los Angeles Times
Even a single, relatively small nuclear detonation hundreds of miles above the heads of Americans would create an electromagnetic pulse - or EMP - that would have apocalyptic results.
From BBC
The Egyptian air accident investigation report concluded there was a "detonation of an explosive device secreted in the forward galley", the area just behind the cockpit.
From BBC
After a botched fireworks detonation in 2021 that the city had to settle for more than $21 million, authorities took no chances with the situation in Pacoima on Friday and evacuated the surrounding area.
From Los Angeles Times
Three Royal Observer Corps personnel, trained to detect and measure the impact of nuclear detonations, accompanied the radar team at the site.
From BBC
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
