mushroom cloud

American

noun

mushroom.

mushroom cloud British

noun

the large mushroom-shaped cloud of dust, debris, etc produced by a nuclear explosion

"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 mushroom cloud

First recorded in 1940–45

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.

Harry Truman’s legacy froze the moment the mushroom cloud rose over Hiroshima.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 16, 2026

Years later, it still felt awkward dancing away to “Enola Gay,” and even more so after the group flashed images of the notorious aircraft and a mushroom cloud on screens.

From Los Angeles Times • May 19, 2025

Federal investigators later concluded that the open burn and the black mushroom cloud it produced were unnecessary, but it was too late.

From Salon • Oct. 5, 2024

Some images showed Margot Robbie with a mushroom cloud hairstyle.

From BBC • Aug. 1, 2023

Apparently, it was drivable, despite those Pac-Man-shaped wheels, because Nemesis revved her engine and disappeared in a mushroom cloud of black smoke.

From "The Mark of Athena" by Rick Riordan

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