thermonuclear
adjective
ther·mo·nu·cle·ar ˌthər-mō-ˈnü-klē-ər 
-ˈnyü-,
nonstandard
-ˈn(y)ü-kyə-lər 1
: of, relating to, or employing transformations in the nuclei of atoms of low atomic weight (such as hydrogen) that require a very high temperature for their inception (as in the hydrogen bomb or in the sun)
thermonuclear reaction
thermonuclear weapon
2
: of, utilizing, or relating to a thermonuclear bomb
thermonuclear war
a thermonuclear attack
Example Sentences
Hydrogen bombs are thermonuclear weapons.
Recent Examples on the Web But a full draft opinion has never leaked to the press in the modern history of the court, and the reaction inside the marble palace will likely be thermonuclear. 
Matt Ford, The New Republic, 3 May 2022 DeChambeau’s controversies emerge from his almost thermonuclear proclivity for violating golf’s behavioral norms. John Guaspari, National Review, 26 Sep. 2021 Even the invention of the atom bomb didn’t end the primacy of carriers; instead, carriers became a platform for delivering thermonuclear weapons. Kyle Mizokami, Popular Mechanics, 24 Sep. 2021 During the Cold War, the U.S., even with NATO, didn’t have primacy over the Soviet Union and Warsaw Pact for one reason: The Soviets saw a war as a fight to the finish in which nuclear and thermonuclear weapons would be used. WSJ, 29 May 2020 Many are the remains of massive stars that collapsed after burning through their thermonuclear trust funds. Dennis Overbye, New York Times, 6 May 2020 In one unsettling plot twist, a package containing a small thermonuclear device is slipped into an order of emergency food supplies. Adrian Chen, New York Times, 3 Mar. 2020 The new estimate is dramatically bigger than previous North Korean nuclear tests, lending credence to claims that a thermonuclear device was tested. Kyle Mizokami, Popular Mechanics, 5 June 2019 Pandemics have become a threat on the scale of thermonuclear war. Mark Olshaker, Fortune, 20 Apr. 2020 See More
Matt Ford, The New Republic, 3 May 2022 DeChambeau’s controversies emerge from his almost thermonuclear proclivity for violating golf’s behavioral norms. John Guaspari, National Review, 26 Sep. 2021 Even the invention of the atom bomb didn’t end the primacy of carriers; instead, carriers became a platform for delivering thermonuclear weapons. Kyle Mizokami, Popular Mechanics, 24 Sep. 2021 During the Cold War, the U.S., even with NATO, didn’t have primacy over the Soviet Union and Warsaw Pact for one reason: The Soviets saw a war as a fight to the finish in which nuclear and thermonuclear weapons would be used. WSJ, 29 May 2020 Many are the remains of massive stars that collapsed after burning through their thermonuclear trust funds. Dennis Overbye, New York Times, 6 May 2020 In one unsettling plot twist, a package containing a small thermonuclear device is slipped into an order of emergency food supplies. Adrian Chen, New York Times, 3 Mar. 2020 The new estimate is dramatically bigger than previous North Korean nuclear tests, lending credence to claims that a thermonuclear device was tested. Kyle Mizokami, Popular Mechanics, 5 June 2019 Pandemics have become a threat on the scale of thermonuclear war. Mark Olshaker, Fortune, 20 Apr. 2020 See More Word History
Etymology
International Scientific Vocabulary
First Known Use
1938, in the meaning defined at sense 1