gunpaper

American

[guhn-pey-per] / ˈgʌnˌpeɪ pər /

noun

Military.

a type of paper treated with nitric acid so that it has a composition similar to that of guncotton.

gunpaper British

/ ˈɡʌnˌpeɪpə /

noun

a cellulose nitrate explosive made by treating paper with nitric acid

"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

Etymology

Origin of gunpaper

First recorded in 1850–55; gun ¹ + paper

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