Dictionary.com
Thesaurus.com

nuclear option

British  

noun

  1. the use of or power to use nuclear weapons

  2. the use of or power to use a measure considered to be particularly drastic

    the nuclear option of a confidence vote

"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

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.

See Examples For:

Unless Uefa sticks by the nuclear option - and goes through with its threat of a boycott.

From BBC Aug. 6, 2026

It knows the nuclear option of its members pulling out of the tournament would severely damage the financial viability of the concept.

From BBC Jul. 30, 2026

There’s also the nuclear option: Ditch the cloud and back up your data to a local drive.

From The Wall Street Journal Feb. 22, 2026

Referred to as a "bazooka" or "nuclear" option, the instrument is intended to deter economic coercion against any of the EU's 27 member states.

From Barron's Jan. 19, 2026

There’s the nuclear option: the singles table in the restaurant.

From Salon Jul. 4, 2025

Vocabulary.com logo
by dictionary.com

Join 12,000,000 vocabulary learners

Start learning new words today on VocabTrainer.
You'll remember them forever.

Start training