megaton

[ meg-uh-tuhn ]

noun

one million tons.
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

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. 2023

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

one million tons
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

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