Other Words from pyrotechnics

pyrotechnician \ ˌpī-rə-ˌtek-ˈni-shən

\ noun

pyrotechnist \ ˌpī-rə-ˈtek-nist

\ noun

Did You Know?

The use of military fireworks in elaborate celebrations of war and peace is an ancient Chinese custom, but our term for the making and launching of fireworks is a product of the 17th and 18th centuries. "Pyrotechnics" and the earlier adjective "pyrotechnic" derive via French from the Greek nouns pyr ("fire") and "techne" ("art"). In "pyr" one can see such fiery relatives as "pyromania," the term for an irresistible impulse to start fires, as well as "pyrite," the mineral also known as fool's gold, which once referred to a stone used for striking fire. Like "fireworks," "pyrotechnics" also has an extended figurative usage, referring to any kind of dazzling display or performance.

Examples of pyrotechnics in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web Bobbitt and his team did four passes in all, including one with actors being filmed during the shooting and another with pyrotechnics only. — Jordan Riefe, Los Angeles Times, "‘Judas’ cinematographer becomes invisible man to unobtrusively catch the action," 31 Mar. 2021 This time, most watched on television as authorities urged residents to stay home to see the seven minutes of pyrotechnics that lit up the Sydney Harbor Bridge and its surroundings. — Caitlin Yilek, CBS News, "Live updates: The world says goodbye to 2020, a year unlike any other," 31 Dec. 2020 This time, most watched on television as authorities urged residents to stay home to see the seven minutes of pyrotechnics that lit up the Sydney Harbor Bridge and its surroundings. — Frank Jordans And Derek Gatopoulos, chicagotribune.com, "New Year’s festivities muted by coronavirus as curtain draws on 2020," 31 Dec. 2020 This also explains why these celebratory pyrotechnics often terrify dogs. — Anna Brooks, Popular Science, "Fireworks scare us—that’s why we love them," 30 Dec. 2020 Twenty seconds later, the heat shield would fly off, as pyrotechnics snapped off nine separate mechanisms and separated it from the rover and backshell. — Sarah Scoles, Wired, "NASA Lands the Perseverance Rover on Mars," 18 Feb. 2021 Presumably the filmmakers decided that the injustices could speak for themselves without any pumped up filmic pyrotechnics. — Peter Rainer, The Christian Science Monitor, "In ‘The Mauritanian,’ Hollywood takes on Guantánamo. Can it do it justice?," 11 Feb. 2021 The usual special-effects pyrotechnics, meanwhile, are channeled into much more subtle triumphs of production design and costuming -- a TV show that turns decades of TV history into an ally. — Brian Lowry, CNN, "'WandaVision' flexes some different muscles as Marvel adds its power to Disney+," 14 Jan. 2021 This time, most watched on television as authorities urged residents to stay home to see the seven minutes of pyrotechnics that lit up the Sydney Harbor Bridge and its surroundings. — Frank Jordans And Derek Gatopoulos, chicagotribune.com, "New Year’s festivities muted by coronavirus as curtain draws on 2020," 31 Dec. 2020

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