detonator

[det-n-ey-ter] Origin

det·o·na·tor

[det-n-ey-ter]
noun
1.
a device, as a percussion cap, used to make another substance explode.
2.
something that explodes.

Origin:
1815–25; detonate + -or2
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
Cite This Source Link To detonator

00:10

00:09

00:08

00:07

00:06

00:05

00:04

00:03

00:02

00:01

Detonator is always a great word to know.
So is ninnyhammer. Does it mean:
a printed punctuation mark (‽), available only in some typefaces, designed to combine the question mark (?) and the exclamation point (!), indicating a mixture of query and interjection, as after a rhetorical question.
a fool or simpleton; ninny.
Collins
World English Dictionary
detonator (ˈdɛtəˌneɪtə)
 
n
1.  a small amount of explosive, as in a percussion cap, used to initiate a larger explosion
2.  a device, such as an electrical generator, used to set off an explosion from a distance
3.  a substance or object that explodes or is capable of exploding

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
Cite This Source
Etymonline
Word Origin & History

detonator
1822, agent noun in Latin form from detonate. For suffix, see -er (1).
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
Cite This Source
Encyclopedia Britannica
Encyclopedia

detonator

device that initiates the detonation of a charge of a high explosive by subjecting it to percussion by a shock wave. In strict usage, the term detonator refers to an easily ignited low explosive that produces the shock wave, and the term primer, or priming composition, denotes a substance that produces a sudden burst of flame to ignite the detonator. The primer may be set off by the brief application of heat (from a burning fuse or an electrically heated wire), by friction, or by mechanical shock (like the impact of the firing pin of a gun)

Learn more about detonator with a free trial on Britannica.com.

Encyclopedia Britannica, 2008. Encyclopedia Britannica Online.
Cite This Source
Dictionary.com, LLC. Copyright © 2012. All rights reserved.
  • Please Login or Sign Up to use the Recent Searches feature
FAVORITES
RECENT