hydrogen bomb

noun

: a bomb whose violent explosive power is due to the sudden release of atomic energy resulting from the fusion of light nuclei (as of hydrogen atoms) at very high temperature and pressure to form helium nuclei

Example Sentences

Recent Examples on the Web The world was literally shaken before news broke that North Korea detonated what leaders in the Hermit Kingdom claimed was a hydrogen bomb Tuesday morning local time. —

Carl Engelking, Discover Magazine, 6 Jan. 2016 The second shows the cloud produced by the Castle Bravo thermonuclear hydrogen bomb, itself over 20 miles high. —

Kyle Hill, Discover Magazine, 18 Apr. 2013 Oppenheimer's outspoken opposition to the hydrogen bomb did little to allay suspicion. —

Jennifer Ouellette, Ars Technica, 25 Dec. 2022 Oppenheimer was also outspoken against the development of the more powerful hydrogen bomb. —

Margaret Osborne, Smithsonian Magazine, 20 Dec. 2022 Following the war, Oppenheimer opposed nuclear proliferation and development of the hydrogen bomb, stances that Granholm suggested in her order led the AEC to revoke his security clearance. —

Reuters, NBC News, 17 Dec. 2022 Nuclear fusion technology has been around since the creation of the hydrogen bomb, but using that technology to harness energy has required decades of research. —

Lilia Luciano, CBS News, 13 Dec. 2022 Established in 1988, the prize is named after Andrei D. Sakharov, the nuclear physicist and Nobel laureate who led the Soviet Union’s development of the hydrogen bomb and subsequently became an indefatigable campaigner for human rights. —

Matthew Mpoke Bigg Dan Bilefsky Carly Olson John Ismay Matina Stevis-gridneff Julian E. Barnes Monika Pronczuk Finbarr O’reilly Ivan Nechepurenko Carly Olson Enjoli Liston Christopher F. Schuetze Megan Specia Jason Horowitz Carlotta Gall, New York Times, 20 Oct. 2022 In April 1950, the magazine was set to publish an article written by physicist Hans Bethe (who had worked on the Manhattan Project) that was critical of the development of the hydrogen bomb. —

The Editors, Scientific American, 8 Nov. 2022 See More

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'hydrogen bomb.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Word History

First Known Use

1947, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler

The first known use of hydrogen bomb was in 1947

See more words from the same year

Cite this Entry

Style

“Hydrogen bomb.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/hydrogen%20bomb. Accessed 27 Jan. 2023.

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