C-bomb

English

Etymology

Abbreviation + bomb. In second sense, after F-bomb etc.

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA^(key): /ˈsiːbɒm/

Noun

C-bomb (plural C-bombs)

1. A type of nuclear bomb encased in cobalt.
   • 1954, From Rags to Riches with Uranium, page 9:

     Unlike steel, cobalt absorbs radioactivity, and in the explosion of a C-bomb, the thick shell of cobalt metal would be blasted apart with such force that the cobalt would be pulverized into very fine dust.

   • 2009, Christopher Coker, War in an Age of Risk:

     But we tend to forget the C-bomb, a hydrogen bomb that could 'transmute' an element such as cobalt into a radioactive element about 320 times as powerful as radium.

2. (informal) The word "cunt".
   • 2016 July 11, Rachel Braier, The Guardian:

     However, herein lies the anxiety of using the C-bomb. While I am very happy to use it (a little too liberally admittedly) in my everyday parlance, it still feels slightly shocking to see it written down and one is reminded that, for many, it is still the last word in offensiveness.