(げんしばくだん)

げんしばくだん
noun
atomic bomb
1. atomic bomb
A weapon that derives its destructive force from nuclear fission reactions.
原子爆弾(げんしばくだん)投下(とうか)された。
An atomic bomb was dropped.
原子爆弾(げんしばくだん)被害(ひがい)甚大(じんだい)だった。
The damage from the atomic bomb was enormous.
広島(ひろしま)長崎(ながさき)原子爆弾(げんしばくだん)()とされたのは1945(ねん)のことだ。
It was in 1945 that atomic bombs were dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

Usually abbreviated to 原爆(げんばく) in everyday usage. The full form 原子爆弾(げんしばくだん) tends to appear in formal or historical contexts. As the only country to have experienced nuclear attacks, Japan has a deep cultural relationship with this word and its abbreviation.

COMMON COLLOCATIONS:

  • 原子爆弾(げんしばくだん)投下(とうか)する: to drop an atomic bomb
  • 原子爆弾(げんしばくだん)開発(かいはつ): atomic bomb development
  • 原子爆弾(げんしばくだん)被害者(ひがいしゃ): atomic bomb victims

RELATED TERMS:

  • 原爆(げんばく): atomic bomb (abbreviation) — the more commonly used short form
  • 被爆者(ひばくしゃ): atomic bomb survivor — a word with deep significance in Japanese society
  • 核兵器(かくへいき): nuclear weapons — the broader category that includes both atomic and hydrogen bombs
  • 水素爆弾(すいそばくだん): hydrogen bomb — a more powerful type of nuclear weapon