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Glite Dictionary
heavyweight torpedo

heavyweight torpedo

7.9
A large underwater weapon with a very powerful explosive charge that submarines use to attack ships
  • noun
  • Specialized
translation icon : torpedo pesado
  • Several navies around the world use the heavyweight torpedo as their principal anti-ship and anti-submarine weapon.

Examples

  • The submarine was equipped with the latest heavyweight torpedo for maximum strike capability.

  • Loading a heavyweight torpedo requires special handling equipment due to its sheer size and mass.

  • The heavyweight torpedo struck the target with precision.

  • How does a heavyweight torpedo differ from a lightweight one?

  • Several navies around the world use the heavyweight torpedo as their principal anti-ship and anti-submarine weapon.

  • Loading a heavyweight torpedo requires special handling equipment due to its sheer size and mass.

  • The submarine was equipped with the latest heavyweight torpedo for maximum strike capability.

Synonyms

heavy torpedo
vsheavyweight torpedo
  • Specialized
8.3

A large underwater weapon launched from submarines with a very powerful warhead to sink big ships

has identical meaning but uses a longer compound adjective form

How Powerful

heavyweight torpedo
  • Specialized
7.9
submarine torpedo
  • Specialized
5.6
anti-submarine rocket
  • Specialized
7.3
depth charge
  • Specialized
3 8.1

Surface Forms

heavyweight torpedo singular
heavyweight torpedoes plural

Morphology

heavyweight + torpedo

The meaning 'a large, powerful torpedo' is directly and compositionally derived from 'heavyweight' (heavy/large/powerful) modifying 'torpedo' (an underwater missile). This follows a standard attributive-noun compound pattern with clear cross‑linguistic parallels, so a B1 learner who knows the constituent words can infer the MWE's meaning from its parts.

Etymology

The phrase heavyweight torpedo puts together heavyweight, meaning very large and heavy, and torpedo, an underwater explosive device. Picture a huge, heavy underwater weapon launched by a submarine to strike ships from a distance, and that's why the phrase means the biggest, most powerful torpedoes used as a 'main weapon'.