# nuclear

Pronunciation: US say "NOO-klee-ur" /ˈn(j)u.kli.ɚ/; UK say "NYOO-klee-uh" /ˈnjuː.klɪə(ɹ)/

## Adjective

1. Using or relating to the energy given off when atomic nuclei split, join or decay, as in weapons or power stations.
   - Simple: Using the energy that comes from splitting or joining atoms, for example in bombs or power stations.
   - _The treaty limits how many nuclear warheads each side may deploy._
   - _A single nuclear strike could level an entire city._
2. Pertaining to the nucleus of an atom, its central core.
   - Simple: Relating to the tiny center part of an atom.
   - _The strong nuclear force binds protons and neutrons together._
   - _Each element is defined by its nuclear charge, the number of protons it carries._
4. Relating to, belonging to, or making up a family unit of two parents and their children.
   - Simple: Relating to a family made up of only parents and their children.
   - _Sociologists contrast the nuclear household with extended families that include grandparents._
   - _Postwar suburbs were designed around the nuclear family of two parents and their kids._
5. Possessing nuclear weapons, especially as a nation or armed force.
   - Simple: Having weapons that explode using the power inside atoms.
   - _North Korea became a nuclear state with its first test in 2006._
   - _Analysts debate whether sanctions can keep the regime from going nuclear._
6. Found in, or having to do with, the nucleus of a cell.
   - Simple: Found in, or relating to, the nucleus, the part of a cell that holds most of its DNA.
   - _Mutations in nuclear DNA are inherited from both parents, unlike mitochondrial DNA._
   - _Molecules pass through nuclear pores to move in and out of the nucleus._
7. Extreme in its approach or very serious in its consequences.
   - Simple: Extreme in a way that causes very serious results.
   - _After months of failed talks, the union went nuclear and called a general strike._
   - _Suing your own family over a borrowed lawnmower seems like a nuclear response._

## Noun

3. Power generated by nuclear reactions, used especially as a source of electricity.
   - Simple: Power made from the energy inside atoms, used to create electricity.
   - _Germany shut down its last reactors in 2023, ending its use of nuclear._
   - _Unlike wind and solar, nuclear supplies steady power around the clock._
8. A weapon that derives its destructive force from reactions in atomic nuclei; also, such weapons considered collectively.
   - Simple: Bombs and other weapons powered by the energy inside atoms.

## Adjective

9. Forming the core around which something else develops or is arranged. *(archaic)*
   - Simple: Forming the center that other things grow or are built around.

## Origin

From New Latin nucleāris, from Latin nucleus ("kernel, core"), a diminutive of nux ("nut"); by surface analysis it can be read as nucleus + -ar.

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/nuclear (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).