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Glite Dictionary
depth bomb

depth bomb

8.1
A weapon that explodes underwater at a set depth to attack submarines
  • noun
  • Archaic
translation icon : bomba de profundidad
  • The military deployed a depth bomb to target enemy submarines.

Examples

  • The navy dropped a depth bomb to target the submarine hidden beneath the waves.

  • Engineers are testing a new type of depth bomb for increased accuracy.

  • Old war documentaries often show ships deploying depth bombs during maritime battles.

  • They tested several depth bombs during the naval exercise.

  • The navy deployed several depth bombs to target the enemy submarine lurking beneath the surface.

  • During the exercise, the crew effectively demonstrated how to use depth bombs against underwater threats.

  • The depth bomb exploded at the calculated depth, successfully damaging the submerged vessel.

Synonyms

depth charge
vsdepth bomb
  • Specialized
3 8.1

A bomb that explodes underwater at a set depth to destroy submarines

is used to attack submarines rather than stressing destruction

Surface Forms

depth bomb singular
depth bombs plural

Morphology

depth + bomb

The meaning is directly compositional: 'depth' (measure downward) specifies the environment/setting and 'bomb' (explosive device) names the object, so together they denote an explosive designed to act at a particular underwater depth. This noun‑noun modifier pattern is regular and cross‑linguistically transparent, so a B1 learner who knows both constituents would readily infer the MWE's meaning.

Etymology

Depth bomb is a literal name: a bomb made to explode at a certain depth under the water. Ships used these to hit hidden submarines, so the name means 'a bomb that explodes at a set depth underwater'.