grenade

noun

gre·​nade grə-ˈnād 

: a small missile that contains an explosive or a chemical agent (such as tear gas, a flame producer, or a smoke producer) and that is thrown by hand or projected (as by a rifle or special launcher)

Examples of grenade in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

More than a dozen North Vietnamese soldiers opened fire from two directions with rifles, machine guns, and grenades, wounding every member of the team. — Ethan Rocke, Charlotte Observer, 20 Aug. 2026

Rocky Bleier was wounded by gunfire and a grenade in Vietnam before somehow fighting his way back to become a 1,000-yard rusher and four-time Super Bowl champion with the Pittsburgh Steelers. — Mike Bianchi, The Orlando Sentinel, 18 Aug. 2026

The same is true for a factory making hand grenades or bombs. — Edward Lotterman, Twin Cities, 16 Aug. 2026

Dozens of additional settlers arrived, moving boulders into the road and throwing rocks at the security forces, who were seen firing sound grenades and spraying settlers with pepper spray before withdrawing. — Zeena Saifi, CNN Money, 13 Aug. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Middle French, literally, pomegranate, from Late Latin granata, from Latin, feminine of granatus seedy, from granum grain — more at corn

First Known Use

1591, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing grenade

• concussion grenade
• flash-bang grenade
• flash grenade
• fragmentation grenade
• smoke grenade
• stun grenade

Rhymes for grenade

• afraid
• allayed
• arcade
• arrayed
• assayed
• barmaid
• betrayed
• blockade
• bridesmaid
• brigade
• brocade
• buffeted

Kids Definition

grenade

noun

gre·​nade grə-ˈnād 

: a small bomb that is thrown by hand or launched (as by a rifle)

Etymology

from early French grenade, granade "pomegranate, grenade," from Latin granata "pomegranate," derived from Latin granatus "seedy," from granum "grain, seed" — related to garnet, grain, pomegranate see Word History at garnet