torpedo
Americannoun
plural
torpedoes-
a self-propelled, cigar-shaped missile containing explosives and often equipped with a homing device, launched from a submarine or other warship, for destroying surface vessels or other submarines.
-
any of various submarine explosive devices for destroying hostile ships, as a mine.
-
a cartridge of gunpowder, dynamite, or the like, exploded in an oil well to facilitate the extraction of oil from the well.
-
a detonating device fastened to the top of a rail so as to be exploded by the pressure of a locomotive or car, thus giving an audible signal to members of a train crew.
-
any of various other explosive devices, as a firework that consists of an explosive wrapped up with gravel in a piece of tissue paper and that detonates when thrown forcibly on the ground or against a hard surface.
-
Also called torpedo fish. an electric ray, especially Torpedo nobiliana, of the Atlantic Ocean.
-
an electric catfish, Malapterurus electricus, inhabiting waters of tropical central Africa and the Nile valley.
-
Informal. a hero sandwich.
-
Slang. a gangster hired as a murderer.
verb (used with object)
-
to attack, hit, damage, or destroy with torpedoes.
-
to explode a torpedo in (an oil well) to facilitate the extraction of oil.
-
to undermine, ruin, or destroy.
He torpedoed our plans.
verb (used without object)
noun
-
a cylindrical self-propelled weapon carrying explosives that is launched from aircraft, ships, or submarines and follows an underwater path to hit its target
-
obsolete a submarine mine
-
a firework containing gravel and a percussion cap that explodes when dashed against a hard surface
-
a detonator placed on a railway line as a danger signal
-
any of various electric rays of the genus Torpedo
verb
-
to hit (a ship, etc) with one or a number of torpedoes
-
to render ineffective; destroy or wreck
to torpedo the administration's plan
Regionalisms
See hero sandwich.
Other Word Forms
- torpedo-like adjective
- torpedolike adjective
- untorpedoed adjective
Etymology
Origin of torpedo
1510–20; < Latin torpēdō numbness, torpidity, electric ray, equivalent to torpē ( re ) to be stiff ( torpid 1 ) + -dō noun suffix
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.
Sri Lanka on Friday denounced the toll of the Mideast fighting, as the nation opened its arms to over 200 Iranian sailors who sought help after a deadly torpedo strike on another of Iran's ships.
From Barron's • Mar. 6, 2026
“The first sinking of an enemy ship by a torpedo since World War II. Like in that war back when we were still the War Department, we are fighting to win.”
From Barron's • Mar. 6, 2026
He said it was the first time a U.S. torpedo had sunk an enemy ship since World War II.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 4, 2026
He also claimed it was "the first sinking of an enemy ship by a torpedo since World War Two".
From BBC • Mar. 4, 2026
Nikolai Shumkov knew the power of his nuclear torpedo.
From "Fallout: Spies, Superbombs, and the Ultimate Cold War Showdown" by Steve Sheinkin
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
