high explosive
noun
: an explosive (such as TNT) that generates gas with extreme rapidity and has a shattering effect
Examples of high explosive in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Each Mark 48 carries 650 pounds of high explosives and is about as long and as heavy as a Toyota pickup truck.
—
Alex Hollings, Popular Mechanics, 5 Apr. 2023
Send them stealth bombers, high explosives, send in Seal teams and the tanks.
—Amanda Morris, Washington Post, 28 Oct. 2023
Deep below the Nevada desert, a machine dubbed Scorpius is under construction that will use high explosives to crush plutonium to states that exist just prior to a nuclear explosion.
—IEEE Spectrum, 18 Oct. 2023
Scientists have used bees to sniff out chemicals associated with cancer and with diabetes on patients’ breath and to detect the presence of high explosives.
—Stephen Buchmann, The Conversation, 17 May 2023
The bombs themselves were a varying combination of thermite devices, high explosives, and shrapnel.
—David Reamer | Alaska History, Anchorage Daily News, 20 Feb. 2023
Speculation about the cause in the wake of the boom covered everything from an earthquake (no, according to the U.S. Geological Survey), possible high explosive munitions training at Camp Pendleton (maybe, marine official said), golfer Phil Mickelson testing out some new gear.
—Greg Moran, San Diego Union-Tribune, 12 June 2021
In that same amount of time, a high explosive shell could land, shattering windows, maiming customers or demolishing his snack stand in a neighborhood increasingly bombarded by Russian artillery.
—Natalia Yermak Tyler Hicks, New York Times, 22 Dec. 2022
Unlike a traditional composite propellant, which mechanically mixes a fuel and an oxidizer into a high explosive, the new propellant ignites an energetic fuel—really a low explosive.
—Bryce Tappan, Discover Magazine, 11 Aug. 2017
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Alex Hollings, Popular Mechanics, 5 Apr. 2023
Send them stealth bombers, high explosives, send in Seal teams and the tanks.
—Amanda Morris, Washington Post, 28 Oct. 2023
Deep below the Nevada desert, a machine dubbed Scorpius is under construction that will use high explosives to crush plutonium to states that exist just prior to a nuclear explosion.
—IEEE Spectrum, 18 Oct. 2023
Scientists have used bees to sniff out chemicals associated with cancer and with diabetes on patients’ breath and to detect the presence of high explosives.
—Stephen Buchmann, The Conversation, 17 May 2023
The bombs themselves were a varying combination of thermite devices, high explosives, and shrapnel.
—David Reamer | Alaska History, Anchorage Daily News, 20 Feb. 2023
Speculation about the cause in the wake of the boom covered everything from an earthquake (no, according to the U.S. Geological Survey), possible high explosive munitions training at Camp Pendleton (maybe, marine official said), golfer Phil Mickelson testing out some new gear.
—Greg Moran, San Diego Union-Tribune, 12 June 2021
In that same amount of time, a high explosive shell could land, shattering windows, maiming customers or demolishing his snack stand in a neighborhood increasingly bombarded by Russian artillery.
—Natalia Yermak Tyler Hicks, New York Times, 22 Dec. 2022
Unlike a traditional composite propellant, which mechanically mixes a fuel and an oxidizer into a high explosive, the new propellant ignites an energetic fuel—really a low explosive.
—Bryce Tappan, Discover Magazine, 11 Aug. 2017
See More
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'high explosive.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
First Known Use
1877, in the meaning defined above
Dictionary Entries Near high explosive
Cite this Entry
“High explosive.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/high%20explosive. Accessed 3 Dec. 2023.
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Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about high explosive
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