1.
nuclear warhead
The warhead portion of a nuclear weapon — the part containing the fissile or fusion material that delivers the explosive yield. Typically used in news, policy, and security contexts when discussing missiles that carry nuclear payloads.
核弾頭を搭載したミサイル。
A missile loaded with a nuclear warhead.
その国は数百発の核弾頭を保有している。
That country possesses several hundred nuclear warheads.
新条約のもと、両国は実戦配備された核弾頭の数を削減することに合意した。
Under the new treaty, the two countries agreed to reduce the number of deployed nuclear warheads.
Composed of 核 (nuclear, from 核兵器 "nuclear weapon") and 弾頭 (warhead, literally "tip/head of a projectile"). The word refers specifically to the warhead — the part of the missile that actually detonates — rather than the delivery vehicle (missile, bomber, submarine) itself.
USAGE:
- Most often counted with the counter 発 (rounds): 十発の核弾頭 (ten nuclear warheads).
- Appears constantly in newspaper articles about arms control, proliferation, and security policy.
- A single missile can carry multiple warheads — referred to as 多弾頭 (multiple warheads) or MIRVs in English.
COMMON COLLOCATIONS:
- 核弾頭を搭載する: to load/mount a nuclear warhead
- 核弾頭を保有する: to possess nuclear warheads
- 核弾頭を削減する: to reduce nuclear warheads
- 核弾頭の配備: deployment of nuclear warheads
- 実戦配備の核弾頭: operationally deployed nuclear warheads
SIMILAR WORDS:
- 核兵器: nuclear weapon — the broader term covering warheads and delivery systems
- 弾頭: warhead — the generic term, not necessarily nuclear
- ミサイル: missile — the delivery vehicle
- 核: nuclear — used as a prefix in many compounds (核実験 "nuclear test," 核保有国 "nuclear-weapon state")
- 原爆: atomic bomb — a historical/specific term often referring to the bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki