ballistic

adjective

bal·​lis·​tic bə-ˈli-stik 

1

: extremely and usually suddenly excited, upset, or angry : wild

He went ballistic when he saw the dent in his car.

and the crowd goes ballistic

2

: of or relating to the science of the motion of projectiles in flight

3

exercise : being or characterized by repeated bouncing

ballistic stretching

4

physics, of an object in motion : behaving like a projectile

But the Bell Labs switch uses such a low current that the few ballistic electrons are a distance of a micrometer or more apart …

—Robert Pool

5

of a material : capable of resisting or stopping bullets or other projectiles

ballistic glass

ballistic nylon

… engineered specifically to be worn under ballistic vests and shirts.

—K. M. Reese

ballistically

bə-ˈli-sti-k(ə-)lē 

adverb

Synonyms

• angered
• angry
• apoplectic
• cheesed off [chiefly British]
• choleric
• enraged
• foaming
• fuming
• furious
• hopping
• horn-mad
• hot
• incensed
• indignant
• inflamed
• enflamed
• infuriate
• infuriated
• irate
• ireful
• livid
• mad
• outraged
• rabid
• rankled
• riled
• riley
• roiled
• shirty [chiefly British]
• sore
• steamed up
• steaming
• teed off
• ticked
• wrathful
• wroth

Examples of ballistic in a Sentence

she went ballistic when she discovered her brother reading her e-mail

Recent Examples on the Web

Whether in Asia, Europe, or the Middle East, the modern missile age appears to be defined by ballistic and cruise weapons complicating adversary defenses. —Andrew Metrick, Foreign Affairs, 28 Mar. 2024

Tips for Buying Expandable Luggage Pay attention to the materials Luggage can have a hard shell (often made of polycarbonate or aluminum) or a textile exterior, such as ripstop or ballistic nylon. —Theresa Holland, Travel + Leisure, 25 Mar. 2024

Cities across Ukraine are bombarded far more often than Belgorod, with Russian weapons that are far more powerful, including ballistic and hypersonic missiles. —Francesca Ebel, Washington Post, 15 Mar. 2024

Normally during the arrest of a potentially combative person, officers work in teams and are each given a specific role, such as holding a ballistic shield or providing cover with a firearm or a less-lethal weapon. —Libor Jany, Los Angeles Times, 7 Mar. 2024

Bergmann, who owned an export business in Tampa that shipped medical supplies to Haiti, coordinated the shipment of ballistic vests with Sanon in the months before the Colombian commandos carried out the assassination. —Jacqueline Charles, Miami Herald, 9 Feb. 2024

By 2019 the Houthis were firing ballistic and cruise missiles at Saudi oil fields and airports, and although the Saudis were able to intercept most of the strikes, the struggle was becoming painfully asymmetrical. —Robert F. Worth, The Atlantic, 5 Mar. 2024

Multiple fans add a level of redundancy if one system fails, and there will be a ballistic parachute for a total failure. —Michael Verdon, Robb Report, 1 Mar. 2024

The casings found at the homicide scene were a ballistic match with that gun, according to preliminary test results from police. —Elliot Hughes, Journal Sentinel, 29 Feb. 2024

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from New Latin ballisticus "relating to the motion of projectiles in flight," from Latin ballista ballista + New Latin -icus -ic entry 1

Note: The Latin word was apparently introduced by the French priest and polymath Marin Mersenne (1588-1648) in Ballistica et acontismologia, a section (with separate title page) of his Cogitata physico-mathematica (Paris, 1644).

First Known Use

1764, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Phrases Containing ballistic

• ballistic missile
• go ballistic

Kids Definition

ballistic

adjective

bal·​lis·​tic bə-ˈlis-tik 

: of or relating to ballistics