# dynamite
## English
### Etymology

Coined by Alfred Nobel in 1867. Ultimately from Ancient Greek δύναμις (dúnamis, “power”) +‎ -ite, most likely under the influence of dynamo or dynamic.

### Pronunciation

* IPA: /ˈdaɪ.nəˌmaɪt/
* (obsolete) IPA: /ˈdɪ.nəˌmaɪt/
* Audio (General Australian):(file)

### Noun

dynamite (usually uncountable, plural dynamites)
* A class of explosives made from nitroglycerine in an absorbent medium such as kieselguhr, used in mining and blasting.
* (informal, proscribed) A stick of trinitrotoluene (TNT).
* (figuratively, slang, uncountable) Anything exceptionally dangerous, exciting or wonderful.
** 1977 April 30, Steve Sasville, “To Clothe Or Not...”, in Gay Community News, page 6:Even though sometimes I take differing views from some articles and letters in GCN, I think it's a dynamite piece of work. Good luck and thanks again.
** 2005, Alex Turner (lyrics and music), “I Bet You Look Good On The Dancefloor”, performed by Arctic Monkeys:And your shoulders are frozen (Cold as the night) / Oh, but you're an explosion (You're dynamite)
** 2016, Kit Moulton, Annabella, page 108:That girl was dynamite. Dark hair with killer blue eyes, bronze skin, and an exquisite full-figured body. He warned us: "That issue about what's been happening at that factory, is political dynamite. Keep the lid on it."
* (slang) A strong drug, in particular heroin, cocaine or potent marijuana.

#### Synonyms

* nitro

#### Derived terms

* boom goes the dynamite
* dynamite charge
* dynamite roll
* dynamite tree
* dynamitic
* dynamitish
* dynamitism
* dynamitist
* predynamite

#### Translations
### Verb

dynamite (third-person singular simple present dynamites, present participle dynamiting, simple past and past participle dynamited)
* To blow up with dynamite or other high explosive.
** 1954 February, Trevor Holloway, “Canada's Transcontinental Railway”, in Railway Magazine, page 128:Gradually the construction gangs cut and dynamited their way through some of the most difficult country in the world.
** 1960 February, R. C. Riley, “The London-Birmingham services - Past, Present and Future”, in Trains Illustrated, page 101:[...] on Sunday, August 23, the L.N.W.R. tunnel was closed to enable the old brickwork to be dynamited away, traffic being diverted meanwhile through the M.R. tunnel.
* (figuratively) To dismantle or destroy.
** 2021 July 29, Harry Litman, “Column: Mississippi’s abortion brief dynamites standing law and ‘super duper’ precedents”, in The Los Angeles Times:Even the successful battle in the last century to overturn the court’s infamous Plessy vs. Ferguson “separate but equal” doctrine wasn’t a frontal assault that dynamited precedent.
* (transitive, of brakes) To apply maximum pressure to very quickly.
    dynamite the brakes
** 2009, Claude M. Pearson, Portia Rising, page 50:Juan dynamited the brakes and the car skidded to a halt.
** 2014, Mike Davis, Hunting Men: The Career of an Oregon State Police Detective, page 6:The 1977 Pontiacs had a tendency of dying if you were at high speed and dynamited the brakes.
** 2018, Laird Barron, Blood Standard:At the critical moment I'd learned from countless action flicks I dynamited the brakes and felt the impact of the sedan against my rear bumper.
* (intransitive, of brakes) To lock up from being invoked too suddenly.
    the brakes will dynamite

#### Derived terms

* dynamiter
* undynamited

#### Translations
### See also

* cordite

### References

* ↑ Hall, Joseph Sargent (1942 March 2) “2. The Vowel Sounds of Unstressed and Partially Stressed Syllables”, in The Phonetics of Great Smoky Mountain Speech (American Speech: Reprints and Monographs; 4), New York: King's Crown Press, →DOI, →ISBN, § II.1, page 60.

### Further reading

* “dynamite n.$^2$”, in Green’s Dictionary of Slang, Jonathon Green, 2016–present

## French
### Pronunciation

* IPA: /di.na.mit/
* Audio:(file)
* Homophones: dynamitent, dynamites

### Verb

dynamite
* inflection of dynamiter:
** first/third-person singular present indicative/subjunctive
** second-person singular imperative