cordite

American  

[kawr-dahyt] / ˈkɔr daɪt /

noun

1. a smokeless, slow-burning powder composed of 30 to 58 percent nitroglycerin, 37 to 65 percent nitrocellulose, and 5 to 6 percent mineral jelly.

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cordite British  

/ ˈkɔːdaɪt /

noun

1. any of various explosive materials used for propelling bullets, shells, etc, containing cellulose nitrate, sometimes mixed with nitroglycerine, plasticizers, and stabilizers

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cordite Scientific  

/ kôr′dīt′ /

1. An explosive powder consisting of nitrocellulose, nitroglycerin, and petroleum jelly, used as a propellant for guns. It does not generate smoke and is shaped into cords.

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Etymology

Origin of cordite

First recorded in 1885–90; cord + -ite ¹, so called from its cordlike form

Example Sentences

Getting themselves to fever pitch when there's cordite in the air is one thing.

From BBC • Feb. 14, 2026

As the first rocket shrieks above his head, Iturralde sets off another, another shower of sparks falling at his feet, another cloud of cordite writhing around his sleeve.

From New York Times • Mar. 18, 2021

More the whiff of damp squibs than cordite.

From The Guardian • Jul. 1, 2020

Adams is beholden to multiple constituencies, and for some faction of supporters his charisma has always derived, at least in part, from the whiff of cordite.

From The New Yorker • Mar. 9, 2015

The air outside was still and muggy, but I could smell cordite in the air.

From "Fallen Angels" by Walter Dean Myers