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hydrogen bomb

hydrogen bomb

8 4.9
A very powerful nuclear bomb that makes a huge explosion by joining hydrogen atoms
  • noun
  • /ˈhaɪdrədʒən bɑm/
  • Specialized
translation icon : bomba de hidrógeno
  • On March 1, 1954, the United States detonated a seventeen-megaton hydrogen bomb at Bikini Atoll in the Pacific Ocean.
  • hydrogen bomb test

So if you're going to have a hydrogen bomb, you better be wise enough to wield it.

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Examples

  • The United States detonated a hydrogen bomb above Johnston Island in the South Pacific.

  • The stakes were extremely high; the United States tested a hydrogen bomb in 1952, and the Soviet Union did the same a year later.

    Academic text (2002)
  • However, a third hydrogen bomb remains lost at sea.

  • The question before us is this: Should the hydrogen bomb be built?

  • So this is almost in the range of the biggest hydrogen bomb that the US Department of Defense ever tested, right?

  • What we did not know was that the Soviet Union had initiated the development of the hydrogen bomb a full three months earlier.

    Academic text (1990)
  • At 8 a.m. This morning, the United States detonated a hydrogen bomb above Johnston Island in the South Pacific.

  • Between 1946 and 1958, the United States detonated sixty-six atomic and hydrogen bombs on Bikini and Enewetok atolls in the Pacific.

    Academic text (1990)
  • In 1953, the Soviet Union conducted a secret test of its first hydrogen bomb.

  • North Korea tested what it said was a hydrogen bomb in September 2017.

Synonyms

nuclear weapon
vshydrogen bomb
  • NSFW
634 3.5

A very powerful bomb that uses energy from splitting or joining atoms

is limited to the fusion process that creates helium at high temperatures
nuke
vshydrogen bomb
  • Slang
148 7.6

A very powerful bomb that uses nuclear energy

is the technical fusion weapon described precisely in the key
nuclear warhead
vshydrogen bomb
  • NSFW
35 5.0

A part of a missile or bomb that contains a nuclear bomb

focuses on the fusion mechanism and resulting helium formation rather than delivery
H-bomb
vshydrogen bomb
  • NSFW
3 4.0

A very powerful nuclear weapon that explodes by joining hydrogen atoms

is the formal technical name for the same weapon
fusion bomb
vshydrogen bomb
  • Specialized
1 6.3

A weapon that makes a very large explosion by joining light atoms like hydrogen

is the same fusion-based explosive described more simply in the key
thermonuclear warhead
vshydrogen bomb
  • Specialized
1 7.4

A bomb put on a missile that uses nuclear energy to make a very large explosion

is the general weapon type described in the key concept
thermonuclear bomb
vshydrogen bomb
  • Specialized
1 6.9

A very powerful weapon that makes a huge explosion by joining tiny hydrogen atoms at extreme heat

is the same device named in the key concept
superbomb
vshydrogen bomb
  • Archaic
1 7.5

A very powerful bomb that can destroy a whole city, often using nuclear energy

is the specific fusion-based weapon rather than a general powerful bomb

How Destructive

hydrogen bomb
  • Specialized
8 4.9
atomic bomb
  • Specialized
66 2.3
grenade
170 4.4
firework
180 1.9

Surface Forms

hydrogen bomb singular

Morphology

hydrogen + bomb

The compound combines 'hydrogen' (a chemical element) and 'bomb' (an explosive device), so a learner who knows both words can infer it is a bomb that involves hydrogen and therefore a very powerful/advanced type of bomb. Although the precise technical mechanism (nuclear fusion) is specialized, the overall meaning is directly derivable from the constituents and mirrored across many languages.

Etymology

Hydrogen bomb is named for how it makes a huge explosion: tiny atoms of hydrogen are forced to join and become helium, and that joining releases a very large amount of energy. That's why the name pairs hydrogen with a very powerful bomb.