hydrogen bomb

[ hahy-druh-juhn bom ]
See synonyms for hydrogen bomb on Thesaurus.com
noun
  1. a bomb, more powerful than an atomic bomb, that derives its explosive energy from the thermonuclear fusion reaction of hydrogen isotopes.

Origin of hydrogen bomb

1
First recorded in 1945–50
  • Also called fu·sion bomb [fyoo-zhuhn bom], /ˈfyu ʒən ˌbɒm/, ther·mo·nu·cle·ar bomb [thur-moh-noo-klee-er bom] /ˌθɜr moʊˈnu kli ər ˌbɒm/ .
  • Also H-bomb [eych-bom] /ˈeɪtʃˌbɒm/ .

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use hydrogen bomb in a sentence

  • Even von Schlichten, who had seen H-bombs and Bethe-cycle bombs, was impressed.

    Uller Uprising | Henry Beam Piper, John D. Clark and John F. Carr
  • "Each class is a little worse than the one before; in about five years, they'll be making H-bombs in the lab," Prestonby said.

    Null-ABC | Henry Beam Piper and John Joseph McGuire
  • Even now the bomb-bay doors were opening, armed H-bombs hung above the planet, held in place only by their shackles.

    Sense of Obligation | Henry Maxwell Dempsey (AKA Harry Harrison)
  • The Nyjord ships carry enough H-bombs to turn the entire planet into an atomic pile.

    Planet of the Damned | Harry Harrison
  • Even now, the bomb-bay doors were opening; armed H-bombs hung above the planet, held in place only by their shackles.

    Planet of the Damned | Harry Harrison

British Dictionary definitions for hydrogen bomb

hydrogen bomb

noun
  1. a type of bomb in which energy is released by fusion of hydrogen nuclei to give helium nuclei. The energy required to initiate the fusion is provided by the detonation of an atomic bomb, which is surrounded by a hydrogen-containing substance such as lithium deuteride: Also called: H-bomb See also fusion bomb

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Scientific definitions for hydrogen bomb

hydrogen bomb

  1. An extremely destructive bomb whose explosive power is derived from the energy released when hydrogen atoms are fused to form helium. This atomic fusion reaction is the same reaction that takes place in stars like the Sun, where the pressure of gravity forces hydrogen atoms to fuse; a hydrogen bomb uses the force of an atomic explosion (the fission reaction exploited in atomic bombs) to compress the hydrogen to the point where fusion takes place. Hydrogen bombs are many times more powerful than atomic bombs.

The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Cultural definitions for hydrogen bomb

hydrogen bomb

A nuclear weapon with enormous explosive power, fueled by nuclear fusion, in which atoms of hydrogen combine to form atoms of helium.

The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.