► bomb a weapon that explodes: · The bomb exploded on a bus in Jerusalem during the city’s morning rush hour.· Fifty-five people were injured in a car bomb attack in Baghdad.· Morrow was convicted in 1998 of sending four letter bombs (=a small bomb hidden in a package and sent to someone in order to hurt or kill them) to government officials.· People were worried that terrorists would try to detonate a dirty bomb (=a bomb that contains nuclear materials)in the city centre.
► explosives bombs or substances that can cause explosions: · They used explosives to blow the door off the front of the building.· The car was packed with 1,000 lbs of high explosives (=powerful explosives).
► device a bomb – used especially in news reports: · Police found the device hidden in a suitcase.· A bomb threat was received and the building was evacuated, but no device was found.
► IED a bomb that has been made using whatever materials are available, especially one used to blow up soldiers travelling through a place. IED is short for ‘improvised explosive device’: · Several soldiers were killed when an IED exploded as their convoy drove by.
► mine a type of bomb that is hidden just below the ground or under water, and that explodes when it is touched: · The fields are still full of landmines.· The ship struck a mine and sank.
► grenade (also hand grenade) a small bomb that can be thrown by hand or fired from a special gun: · He pulled the pin and threw a grenade toward the enemy’s position.
(improvised explosive device) a bomb that has been made using whatever materials are available. IEDs are used by terrorists or people who are opposed to their government rather than by official military forces.