noun
- a nuclear or thermonuclear weapon.
- a nuclear power plant or nuclear reactor.
- nuclear energy: to convert from coal to nuke.
adjective
- of or relating to a nuclear or thermonuclear weapon or to a nuclear plant.
verb (used with object), nuked, nuk·ing.
- to attack, defeat, or destroy with or as if with nuclear weapons.
- Slang. to cook or bake in a microwave oven.
verb (tr)
- to attack or destroy with nuclear weapons
noun
- a nuclear bomb
- a military strike with nuclear weapons
- nuclear power
- mainly US a nuclear power plant
n.short for nuclear weapon, 1959, U.S. military slang (see nuclear). The verb is attested from 1962; the slang sense of “to cook in a microwave oven” is from 1987. Related: Nuked; nuking.