Molotov cocktail

noun

Mo·​lo·​tov cocktail ˈmä-lə-ˌtȯf- How to pronounce Molotov cocktail (audio)
ˈmȯ-
ˈmō-
-ˌtȯv-
: a crude bomb made of a bottle filled with a flammable liquid (such as gasoline) and usually fitted with a wick (such as a saturated rag) that is ignited just before the bottle is hurled

Examples of Molotov cocktail in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
During the gathering, a man attacked participants by throwing Molotov cocktails into the crowd. Sarah Horbacewicz, CBS News, 1 June 2026 Soliman used a makeshift flamethrower and Molotov cocktails to burn people who had gathered on Boulder’s Pearl Street Mall for a weekly demonstration urging the release of Israeli hostages held in Gaza after the Oct. 7, 2023, attacks by Hamas. Shelly Bradbury, Denver Post, 29 May 2026 Think back to April, when a man threw a Molotov cocktail at OpenAI CEO Sam Altman‘s North Beach home in San Francisco, setting fire to an exterior gate. Sydney Lake, Fortune, 24 May 2026 Three months later, Moreno-Gama was arrested on accusations of throwing a Molotov cocktail at Altman’s house, then driving to OpenAI’s San Francisco headquarters with a jug of kerosene and threatening to burn the building down and kill anyone inside. Lorena O’Neil, Rolling Stone, 11 May 2026 See All Example Sentences for Molotov cocktail

Word History

Etymology

Vyacheslav M. Molotov

First Known Use

1940, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of Molotov cocktail was in 1940

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Cite this Entry

“Molotov cocktail.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/Molotov%20cocktail. Accessed 13 Jun. 2026.

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