cruise missile
55
6.3
- noun
- /kruːz ˈmɪsəl/
- Specialized
:
misil de crucero
- During the conflict, the Navy fired cruise missiles to strike strategic locations deep inland.
- launch cruise missiles
- cruise missile strike
- cruise missile attack
But the weapons, the cruise missiles, right?
- But the weapons, the cruise missiles, right?
- India accidentally launched a cruise missile at Pakistan and common suit.
- About four of those have nuclear capabilities and cruise missiles.
Examples
-
The military deployed several cruise missiles to ensure precision targeting of enemy facilities.
-
In addition, the Israelis can make use of ballistic missiles and cruise missiles from their Dolphin-class submarines.
Academic text (2012) -
Should I send a couple cruise missiles down there?
-
At relatively low cost, the United States can launch bombing or cruise missile attacks against its enemies.
Academic text (1999) -
The French have an air launch cruise missile, which is a mainstay of their nuclear force structure.
-
Cruise missiles are directed at New Delhi.
-
The difficulty would be greater still if an airplane or a cruise missile were used to deliver the nuclear weapon.
Academic text (2006) -
Yesterday morning, the American Air Force launched two cruise missiles from Swadley airbase in Great Britain.
-
Thirteen days after that, Clinton ordered a cruise-missile strike on a factory in Sudan and a terrorist training camp in Afghanistan.
Academic text (2010) -
The attack came in waves, cruise missiles, followed by the F117 stealth bombers with so-called bunker buster bombs.
Synonyms
1
7.9
A small flying machine with wings that carries a bomb to a target
A missile with wings and a jet engine that carries explosives to a target without a person on board
How Powerful
- Specialized
1
5.9
- Specialized
55
6.3
- Specialized
- Specialized
Surface Forms
Morphology
The compound combines 'cruise' (to move/travel at a steady speed) with 'missile' (a projectile weapon), so its meaning — a missile that travels/flies steadily/under its own power to a target — is directly inferable from the parts. This is a compositional, technical term found across many languages, so a B1 learner who knows both constituents would very likely understand it.
Etymology
Cruise missile comes from the words cruise (meaning 'to move steadily') and missile ('a weapon'). Think of a small flying weapon that cruises like a plane for many miles and then hits a target, so the term means a weapon that travels far and finds its target.