nuclear

[noo-klee-er, nyoo- or, by metathesis, -kyuh-ler]

See more synonyms for nuclear on Thesaurus.com

adjective

pertaining to or involving atomic weapons: nuclear war.
operated or powered by atomic energy: a nuclear submarine.
(of a nation or group of nations) having atomic weapons.

of, relating to, or forming a nucleus.
of, relating to, or like the nuclear family: nuclear bonds.

noun Informal.

nuclear energy: switching to nuclear as a power source.

Origin of nuclear

1840–50; nucle(us) + -ar¹; compare French nucléaire

Related formsin·ter·nu·cle·ar, adjectivemul·ti·nu·cle·ar, adjectivepost·nu·cle·ar, adjective

Pronunciation note

In pronouncing nuclear, the second and third syllables are most commonly said as

[-klee-er] /-kli ər/, a sequence of sounds that directly reflects the spelled sequence ‐cle · ar. In recent years, a somewhat controversial pronunciation has come to public attention, with these two final syllables said as

[-kyuh-ler] /-kyə lər/. Since

[-klee-er] /-kli ər/, the common pronunciation of ‐cle · ar, might also be represented, broadly, as

[-kluh-yer] /-klə yər/, the

[-kyuh-ler] /-kyə lər/ pronunciation can be seen as coming from a process of metathesis, in which the [l] /l/ and the [y] /y/ change places. The resulting pronunciation is reinforced by analogy with such words as molecular, particular, and muscular, and although it occurs with some frequency among highly educated speakers, including scientists, professors, and government officials, it is disapproved of by many.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for nuclear

Contemporary Examples

But I think Steve Austin has to team up with a Japanese holdout to stop a nuclear bomb from going off or something.
‘Archer’ Creator Adam Reed Spills Season 6 Secrets, From Surreal Plotlines to Life Post-ISIS
Marlow Stern
January 8, 2015
He used negotiations with Iran over its nuclear program as an example.
Fact-Checking the Sunday Shows: Dec 21
PunditFact.com
December 21, 2014
Gordon G. Chang is a Forbes.com columnist and the author of Nuclear Showdown: North Korea Takes On the World.
U.S. Should Make North Korea Pay for Sony Hack
Gordon G. Chang
December 18, 2014
Binding the resolution of my case to progress in the nuclear negotiations is profoundly unjust.
An American Marine in Iran’s Prisons Goes on Hunger Strike
IranWire
December 18, 2014
But Hollande was “insistent,” she writes, and “his strength of persuasion was nuclear.”
Hell Hath No Fury Like Valerie Trierweiler, the French President’s Ex
Lizzie Crocker
November 28, 2014

Historical Examples

I walked through the park, and back to the nuclear propulsion center.
Houlihan's Equation
Walt Sheldon
You have nuclear weapons, something nobody on this planet has.
Space Viking
Henry Beam Piper
After returning to their ships, they had opened fire with nuclear missiles.
Space Viking
Henry Beam Piper
Nuclear particles are ignored by it; it just sits there thumbing its nose at us.
The Untouchable
Stephen A. Kallis
Two ships met head on; at such velocities it was like a nuclear blast.
Tulan
Carroll Mather Capps

British Dictionary definitions for nuclear

nuclear

adjective

of, concerned with, or involving the nucleus of an atomnuclear fission
biology of, relating to, or contained within the nucleus of a cella nuclear membrane
of, relating to, forming, or resembling any other kind of nucleus
of, concerned with, or operated by energy from fission or fusion of atomic nucleia nuclear weapon
involving, concerned with, or possessing nuclear weaponsnuclear war; a nuclear strike

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

Word Origin and History for nuclear

adj.

1846, "of or like the nucleus of a cell," from nucleus + -ar, probably by influence of French nucléaire. Use in atomic physics is from 1914; of weapons, from 1945. Hence nuclear physics (1933), nuclear energy (1941), nuclear war (1954). Nuclear winter coined by Richard Turco, but first attested in article by Carl Sagan in "Parade" magazine, Oct. 30, 1983. General sense of "central" is from 1912. Nuclear family, originally a sociologists' term, is first attested 1949 in "Social Structure," by American anthropologist G.P. Murdock (1897-1985). Alternative adjective nucleal is recorded from 1840.

nuclear in Medicine

nuclear

(nōō′klē-ər)

adj.

Of or forming a nucleus.
Of or relating to atomic nuclei.

nuclear in Science

nuclear

[nōō′klē-ər]

Relating to or forming a cell nucleus.
Relating to atomic nuclei.
Using energy derived from the nuclei of atoms through fission or fusion reactions.

nuclear

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Pronunciation note

Examples from the Web for nuclear

Contemporary Examples

But I think Steve Austin has to team up with a Japanese holdout to stop a nuclear bomb from going off or something.

He used negotiations with Iran over its nuclear program as an example.

Gordon G. Chang is a Forbes.com columnist and the author of Nuclear Showdown: North Korea Takes On the World.

Binding the resolution of my case to progress in the nuclear negotiations is profoundly unjust.

But Hollande was “insistent,” she writes, and “his strength of persuasion was nuclear.”

Historical Examples

I walked through the park, and back to the nuclear propulsion center.

You have nuclear weapons, something nobody on this planet has.

After returning to their ships, they had opened fire with nuclear missiles.

Nuclear particles are ignored by it; it just sits there thumbing its nose at us.

Two ships met head on; at such velocities it was like a nuclear blast.

nuclear

Word Origin and History for nuclear

adj.

nuclear

nuclear

Origin of nuclear