detonate

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

The leaked Internal Affairs report said there was a mistaken “universal belief” within the bomb squad that the containment vessel could safely detonate up to 40 pounds of explosive materials.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 27, 2026

If “One of Us” is an entertaining family saga of privilege and comeuppance, it is also a consummate novel of suspense in which revelations detonate with lethal accuracy.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 13, 2026

Commander Fox explains that mines generally fall into two categories: contact mines, which detonate when struck, and influence mines, which explode when sensors detect changes in sound, pressure or magnetism.

From BBC • Jan. 30, 2026

The US currently uses computer simulations and other non-explosive means to test its nuclear weapons, and therefore does not have a practical justification to detonate them, multiple experts said.

From BBC • Oct. 30, 2025

There was a hard block of silence, and then I said quietly, as though my words might detonate the room, “Do you remember what made you fall?”

From "A Separate Peace" by John Knowles