megaton

[ meg-uh-tuhn ]

noun
  1. one million tons.

  2. an explosive force equal to that of one million tons of TNT, as that of atomic or hydrogen bombs. Abbreviation: MT

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Origin of megaton

1
First recorded in 1950–55; mega- + ton1

Other words from megaton

  • meg·a·ton·ic [meg-uh-ton-ik], /ˌmɛg əˈtɒn ɪk/, adjective
  • mul·ti·meg·a·ton, noun

Words Nearby megaton

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use megaton in a sentence

  • Larch put off another entertainment of small stuff, with a fifty megaton thermonuclear, viewscreen-piloted, among them.

    Space Viking | Henry Beam Piper
  • They dropped a five-megaton bomb on each one, and blew both of them to Em-See-Square.

    Space Viking | Henry Beam Piper
  • Standard megaton-kilometer field shelters, earth and log construction.

    Oomphel in the Sky | Henry Beam Piper

British Dictionary definitions for megaton

megaton

/ (ˈmɛɡəˌtʌn) /


noun
  1. one million tons

  2. an explosive power, esp of a nuclear weapon, equal to the power of one million tons of TNT: Abbreviation: mt

Derived forms of megaton

  • megatonic (ˌmɛɡəˈtɒnɪk), adjective

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