smokeless powder

American  

noun

1. any of various substitutes for ordinary gunpowder that give off little or no smoke, especially one composed wholly or mostly of guncotton.

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smokeless powder British  

noun

1. any one of a number of explosives that burn with relatively little smoke. They consist mainly of nitrocellulose and are used as propellants

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Etymology

Origin of smokeless powder

First recorded in 1885–90

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

smokeless powder

In World War I, the company became a major source of smokeless powder and explosives for the Allies.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 26, 2026

There is no known direct link between these particular shipments of smokeless powder and the Ukrainian battlefield, and in customs paperwork Poly Technologies described the powder as being “for assembly of foreign-style hunting cartridges.”

From New York Times ● Jun. 23, 2023

Most modern firearms and other weapons used by soldiers and civilians alike rely on smokeless powder to propel a bullet to its target.

From New York Times ● Jun. 23, 2023

Modern guns use smokeless powder, which usually emits only a wisp.

From Slate ● Jul. 17, 2017

The next great inventions in small arms were the readoption and improvement of the breech-loader, the making of metallic cartridges, the magazine gun, smokeless powder and other explosives, to which further reference will be made.

From Inventions in the Century by Doolittle, William Henry