weapon of mass destruction
noun
Simple meaning
Any human-made weapon causing indiscriminate large-scale death or destruction.
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
wehpuhnuhvmasdihstruhkshuhnSay the bold part a little louder.
IPA pronunciation (US)
ˈwɛpənəvmæsdɪstɹəkʃən
This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.
IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.
Definition
Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.
noun
Any human-made weapon causing indiscriminate large-scale death or destruction, especially a biological weapon, chemical weapon, nuclear weapon or radiological weapon.
A weapon that kills or injures civilian as well as military personnel (nuclear and chemical and biological weapons)
Word Aura™
How this word commonly comes across.
This meaning: Any human-made weapon causing indiscriminate large-scale death or destruction, especially a biological weapon, chemical weapon, nuclear weapon or radiological weapon.
Used this way, weapon of mass destruction is a specialist word carrying real weight of difficulty or hurt. It carries more force than its gentler alternatives. This is a scientific use: it names something precisely within a field of study, so it appears in research and teaching more than in conversation.
- Emotional tone
- Strongly negative
- Formality
- Specialist/technical
- Intensity
- Strong
- How common
- Specialized
- Connotation
- Serious and weighty
- Usage feel
- Clinical and detached
Where it naturally appears
- Science
- Academic writing
- Technical/specialist writing
Usage note
In general conversation this sense usually needs explaining — outside its field, people reach for a plainer word.
Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.
Share your sentence
Use This Word
See how this word sounds in a real sentence.
Ask Vocabaura
Understand the word your way.
What Does It Mean Here?
Words can change meaning depending on context.
Use it yourself
Keep learning “weapon of mass destruction” by choosing the kind of practice you need next.
- Practice sentence writingWrite sentences with vocabulary and get instant feedback.
- Practice in contextAnswer short vocabulary questions drawn from real situations.
- Review vocabularyTest your recall and strengthen words over time.
- Practice typingType vocabulary in short rounds that draw from words you've learned and saved.
Want to type words like this one without looking at the keyboard? Each typing round draws from words you've learned, saved or need to review. Follow the free Learn to Type lessons and type your own vocabulary with confidence.
Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.