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Explosive
//ɛkˈspləʊsɪv// adj, noun, slang
Definitions
Adjective
- 1 Able to, or likely to, explode.
"an explosive device"
- 2 Having the character of an explosion.
"an explosive fire"
- 3 Having the character of an explosion.; Of a specific cellular automaton rule, tending to exhibit infinite and unpredictable growth when starting from finite random patterns.
"Notes: A rule set that (very probably) results in explosive growth; certainly in area if not population."
- 4 Rapidly accelerating. figuratively
"Near-synonym: plyometric"
- 5 Shocking; startling. figuratively
"an explosive accusation"
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- 6 Easily driven to anger, usually with reference to a person. slang
"He has an explosive personality."
- 7 Synonym of plosive. archaic
"the explosive consonants"
Adjective
- 1 serving to explode or characterized by explosion or sudden outburst wordnet
- 2 sudden and loud wordnet
- 3 liable to lead to sudden change or violence wordnet
Noun
- 1 Any explosive substance.
- 2 a chemical substance that undergoes a rapid chemical change (with the production of gas) on being heated or struck wordnet
- 3 A plosive. dated
"The words of these songs were either without meaning, or derived from an idiom with which Watt, a very fair linguist, had no acquaintance. The open a sound was predominant, and the explosives k and g."
Etymology
Etymology 1
From Latin explōs-, stem of the perfect passive participle of explōdō + the suffix -ive.
Etymology 2
From Latin explōs-, stem of the perfect passive participle of explōdō + the suffix -ive.
See also for "explosive"
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