dinamite

dynamite

noun dee-nah-MEE-teh Rare

Origin: Coined by Alfred Nobel in 1867 from Greek dynamis (power).

Usage Note

Dinamite is feminine and invariable in the plural (uncountable as a substance). In colloquial Italian it can be used figuratively to describe something explosive or sensational: quella notizia è dinamite! (that news is dynamite!). Nobel patented the word as a brand name before it became generic.

Examples

"Gli operai usavano la dinamite per scavare."

Natural Translation

The workers used dynamite to dig.

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