C-bomb
nounUK /ˈsiːbɒm/
Etymology Abbreviation + bomb. In second sense, after F-bomb etc.
1
Abbreviation Abbreviation of cobalt bomb: A type of nuclear bomb encased in cobalt.
- Unlike steel, cobalt absorbs radioactivity, and in the explosion of a C-bomb, the thick shell of cobalt metal would be blasted apart with such force that the cobalt would be pulverized into very fine dust.1954, From Rags to Riches with Uranium, page 9:
- But we tend to forget the C-bomb, a hydrogen bomb that could 'transmute' an element such as cobalt into a radioactive element about 320 times as powerful as radium.2009, Christopher Coker, War in an Age of Risk:
2
Informal The word "cunt".
- However, herein lies the anxiety of using the C-bomb. While I am very happy to use it (a little too liberally admittedly) in my everyday parlance, it still feels slightly shocking to see it written down and one is reminded that, for many, it is still the last word in offensiveness.2016 July 11, Rachel Braier, The Guardian: