Gunpowder

Gunpowder
Gunpowder Gun"pow`der, n. (Chem.) A black, granular, explosive substance, consisting of an intimate mechanical mixture of saltpeter, charcoal, and sulphur. It is used in gunnery and blasting. [1913 Webster]

Note: Gunpowder consists of from 70 to 80 per cent of niter, with 10 to 15 per cent of each of the other ingredients. Its explosive energy is due to the fact that it contains the necessary amount of oxygen for its own combustion, and liberates gases (chiefly nitrogen and carbon dioxide), which occupy a thousand or fifteen hundred times more space than the powder which generated them. [1913 Webster]

{Gunpowder pile driver}, a pile driver, the hammer of which is thrown up by the explosion of gunpowder.

{Gunpowder plot} (Eng. Hist.), a plot to destroy the King, Lords, and Commons, in revenge for the penal laws against Catholics. As Guy Fawkes, the agent of the conspirators, was about to fire the mine, which was placed under the House of Lords, he was seized, Nov. 5, 1605. Hence, Nov. 5 is known in England as {Guy Fawkes Day}.

{Gunpowder tea}, a species of fine green tea, each leaf of which is rolled into a small ball or pellet. [1913 Webster]


The Collaborative International Dictionary of English. 2000.

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Look at other dictionaries:

  • Gunpowder — Famille: Thé vert Autres noms : Zhucha, Gong Xi Cha Orig …   Wikipédia en Français

  • gunpowder — early 15c., from GUN (Cf. gun) + POWDER (Cf. powder). The Gunpowder Plot was the conspiracy to blow up the Houses of Parliament on Nov. 5, 1605, while the King, Lords and Commons were assembled there …   Etymology dictionary

  • gunpowder — [gun′pou΄dər] n. 1. an explosive powder, esp. a blackish mixture of sulfur, potassium nitrate, and charcoal, used as a charge in cartridges, shells, etc., for blasting, in fireworks, etc. 2. GUNPOWDER TEA …   English World dictionary

  • Gunpowder — (spr. Gunnpaud r), Fluß im Staate Maryland (Nordamerika), durchfließt die Grafschaft Baltimore u. fällt an der Grenze der Grafschaft Harford in die Chesapeakebai …   Pierer's Universal-Lexikon

  • gunpowder — index ammunition, bomb Burton s Legal Thesaurus. William C. Burton. 2006 …   Law dictionary

  • gunpowder — ► NOUN 1) an explosive consisting of a powdered mixture of saltpetre, sulphur, and charcoal. 2) a fine green China tea, the leaves of which are rolled up into pellets …   English terms dictionary

  • Gunpowder — For other meanings, see gunpowder (disambiguation). Black powder for muzzleloading rifles and pistols in FFFG granulation size. Coin (diameter 24 mm) for comparison. Gunpowder, also known since in the late 19th century as black powder, was the… …   Wikipedia

  • gunpowder — gunpowdery, adj. /gun pow deuhr/, n. 1. an explosive mixture, as of potassium nitrate, sulfur, and charcoal, used in shells and cartridges, in fireworks, for blasting, etc. 2. Also called gunpowder tea. a fine variety of green China tea, each… …   Universalium

  • gunpowder — n. 1) smokeless gunpowder 2) a grain of gunpowder * * * [ gʌnˌpaʊdə] a grain of gunpowder smokeless gunpowder …   Combinatory dictionary

  • gunpowder — Explosive Ex*plo sive, n. 1. An explosive agent; a compound or mixture susceptible of a rapid chemical reaction, as {gunpowder}, {TNT}, {dynamite}, or {nitro glycerine}. [1913 Webster +PJC] 2. A sound produced by an explosive impulse of the… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

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