fissile
adjective
Did you know?
When scientists first used fissile back in the 1600s, the notion of splitting the nucleus of an atom would have seemed far-fetched indeed. In those days, people thought that atoms were the smallest particles of matter that existed and therefore could not be split. Fissile (which can be traced back to Latin findere, meaning "to split" or "to cleave") was used in reference to things like rocks. When we hear about fissile materials today, the reference is usually to nuclear fission: the splitting of an atomic nucleus that releases a huge amount of energy. But there is still a place in our language for the original sense of fissile (and for the noun fissility, meaning "the quality of being fissile"). A geologist, for example, might refer to slate as being fissile.
Example Sentences
Edith M. Lederer, ajc, 26 Aug. 2022 Most atoms do not fission, but the isotopes of certain elements, such as uranium-235, are fissile. Washington Post, 28 Apr. 2022 But given Iran’s advancements since the original deal, Tehran is currently enriching uranium at up to 60 percent purity, producing uranium metal, and hiding stockpiles of fissile material from the IAEA. The Editors, National Review, 4 Mar. 2022 This is the ability to put enough pressure on the fissile material to detonate it and create a nuclear yield. CBS News, 5 Jan. 2022 The nation’s output of uranium—a fissile material for nuclear weapons when enriched—is just a fraction of what could be produced, according to new research from Stanford University’s Center for International Security and Cooperation. Timothy W. Martin, WSJ, 4 Nov. 2021 And this means that Iran can distribute this capacity to a place that might be difficult to attack, difficult to discover and would allow Iran to quickly develop the fissile material for a weapon. CBS News, 3 Nov. 2021 Th-232 captures a neutron and converts to U-233 which is also fissile and begins providing more neutrons and more power. James Conca, Forbes, 6 Oct. 2021 The North’s production of fissile materials violates multiple resolutions from the UN Security Council, which has sought to stop the country from developing nuclear warheads, with little success. BostonGlobe.com, 30 Aug. 2021 See More Word History
borrowed from Latin fissilis "easily split," from fid-, variant stem of findere "to split, cleave" + -tilis "subject to, susceptible to (the action of the verb)" — more at bite entry 1
1661, in the meaning defined at sense 1