detonate
verb
det·o·nate
ˈde-tᵊn-ˌāt 
ˈde-tə-ˌnāt
detonated; detonating
: to explode with sudden violence
1
: to cause to detonate
detonate a bomb
compare deflagrate
2
: to set off in a burst of activity : spark
programs that detonated controversies
Examples of detonate in a Sentence
The first atomic bomb was detonated in 1945.
the bomb detonated with a thunder that could be heard for blocks in all directions
Recent Examples on the Web
One Russian missile landed in a forest but didn't detonate.
—
Kim Hjelmgaard, USA Today, 10 Sep. 2025
Israel’s concentration on destroying Gaza City’s infrastructure has utilized a variety of means, including heavy bombs and, recently, old armored vehicles laden with a large amount of explosives and detonated via remote control.
—Brady Knox, The Washington Examiner, 8 Sep. 2025
Written by Herskovitz and directed by Zwick, the film about a terrorist group’s threat to detonate a nuclear bomb in Charleston, SC proved a ratings and critical winner.
—John Tamny, Forbes.com, 2 Sep. 2025
In September 2024, Israel blew up the group’s pagers, causing gruesome injuries as the devices detonated in Hezbollah operatives’ pockets.
—Graeme Wood, The Atlantic, 2 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for detonate
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Kim Hjelmgaard, USA Today, 10 Sep. 2025
Israel’s concentration on destroying Gaza City’s infrastructure has utilized a variety of means, including heavy bombs and, recently, old armored vehicles laden with a large amount of explosives and detonated via remote control.
—Brady Knox, The Washington Examiner, 8 Sep. 2025
Written by Herskovitz and directed by Zwick, the film about a terrorist group’s threat to detonate a nuclear bomb in Charleston, SC proved a ratings and critical winner.
—John Tamny, Forbes.com, 2 Sep. 2025
In September 2024, Israel blew up the group’s pagers, causing gruesome injuries as the devices detonated in Hezbollah operatives’ pockets.
—Graeme Wood, The Atlantic, 2 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for detonate
Cite this Entry
“Detonate.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/detonate. Accessed 17 Sep. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
detonate
verb
det·o·nate
ˈdet-ᵊn-ˌāt
ˈdet-ə-ˌnāt
detonated; detonating
: to explode or cause to explode with sudden violence
detonation
noun
ˌdet-ᵊn-ˈā-shən
ˌdet-ə-ˈnā-
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