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dynamite - 5 dictionary results

dy⋅na⋅mite

  [dahy-nuh-mahyt] noun, verb, -mit⋅ed, -mit⋅ing, adjective
Use dynamite in a Sentence
–noun
1. a high explosive, originally consisting of nitroglycerin mixed with an absorbent substance, now with ammonium nitrate usually replacing the nitroglycerin.
2. any person or thing having a spectacular effect.
–verb (used with object)
3. to blow up, shatter, or destroy with dynamite: Saboteurs dynamited the dam.
4. to mine or charge with dynamite.
–adjective
5. Informal. creating a spectacular or optimum effect; great; topnotch: a dynamite idea; a dynamite crew.
Origin:
1867; < Sw dynamit, introduced by A. B. Nobel, its inventor; see dynam-, -ite 1

Related forms:
dy⋅na⋅mit⋅er, noun
dy⋅na⋅mit⋅ic  [dahy-nuh-mit-ik] , adjective
dy⋅na⋅mit⋅i⋅cal⋅ly, adverb
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To dynamite
dy·na·mite   (dī'nə-mīt')   
n.  
  1. Any of a class of powerful explosives composed of nitroglycerin or ammonium nitrate dispersed in an absorbent medium with a combustible dope, such as wood pulp, and an antacid, such as calcium carbonate, used in blasting and mining.
  2. Slang
    1. Something exceptionally exciting or wonderful.
    2. Something exceptionally dangerous: These allegations are political dynamite.
tr.v.   dy·na·mit·ed, dy·na·mit·ing, dy·na·mites
  1. To blow up, shatter, or otherwise destroy with or as if with dynamite.
  2. To charge with dynamite.
adj.   Slang
Outstanding; superb: a dynamite performance; a dynamite outfit.

[Swedish dynamit, from Greek dunamis, power; see dynamic.]
dy'na·mit'er n.
Word History: The same man who gave us dynamite gave us the Nobel Peace Prize, an irony that was surely not lost on the pacifistic Alfred Nobel himself. It is perhaps less well known that Nobel also contributed the word dynamite. Coined in Swedish in the form dynamit, the word was taken from Greek dunamis, "power," and the Swedish suffix -it, which corresponds to the English suffix -ite used in various scientific fields. Greek dunamis also gave us words such as dynamic and dynamo and itself probably goes back to the verb dunasthai, "to be able," from which comes English dynasty.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Dynamite

Dy"na*mite\, n. [Gr. ? power. See Dynamic.] (Chem.) An explosive substance consisting of nitroglycerin absorbed by some inert, porous solid, as infusorial earth, sawdust, etc. It is safer than nitroglycerin, being less liable to explosion from moderate shocks, or from spontaneous decomposition.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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Language Translation for : dynamite
Spanish: dinamita,
German: das Dynamit,
Japanese: ダイナマイト
More Translations »

dynamite 
1867, from Sw. dynamit, coined 1867 by its inventor, Sw. chemist Alfred Nobel (1833-96), from Gk. dynamis "power." Fig. sense of "something potentially dangerous" is from 1922.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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dynamite   (dī'nə-mīt')  Pronunciation Key 
A powerful explosive used in blasting and mining. It typically consists of nitroglycerin and a nitrate (especially sodium nitrate or ammonium nitrate), combined with an absorbent material that makes it safer to handle.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary
Copyright © 2002. Published by Houghton Mifflin. All rights reserved.
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