hand grenade

noun

a grenade or explosive shell that is thrown by hand and exploded either by impact or by means of a fuze.

a grenade or glass missile containing a chemical, for extinguishing fire.

Nearby words

hand bell, hand brake, hand down, hand drill, hand glass, hand grenade, hand horn, hand in, hand in glove, hand in hand, hand in the till, with one's

Origin of hand grenade

First recorded in 1655–65

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for hand-grenade

Had a hand-grenade with the fuse alight been dropped upon the table, the consternation could scarce have been greater.
The Master of Appleby|Francis Lynde
He himself was wounded in the leg by the splinter of a hand-grenade.
History of the Reign of Philip the Second, King of Spain.|William H. Prescott
Always under potential fire and for three years within range of the deadly machine gun and hand-grenade.
Chit-Chat; Nirvana; The Searchlight|Mathew Joseph Holt
His wife in the flesh stood at his feet with a hand-grenade and a rifle, daggers and pistols in her belt.
Vittoria, Complete|George Meredith

The woman showed them a very old palm, with a hole in it made by a hand-grenade in the year '49.
Csar or Nothing|Po Baroja Baroja

British Dictionary definitions for hand-grenade

hand grenade

noun

a small metal or plastic canister containing explosives, usually activated by a short fuse and used in close combat

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