nuclear option

noun

1. the use of or power to use nuclear weapons
2. the use of or power to use a measure considered to be particularly drastic

   the nuclear option of a confidence vote

Example Sentences

The nuclear option would be to leave him out, possibly sending a clear message to the dressing room that no-one is safe.

From BBC

The group has produced a 60-page booklet called The Nuclear Option.

From BBC

Intelligence showed Putin soon backing away from the nuclear option, though Woodward notes that one reason may have been the fact that, over the next few months, the battlefield stabilized—Russia no longer faced the threat of a dreadful defeat.

From Slate

The nuclear option would be to demand Google breaks itself into smaller chunks - a move US officials have not ruled out.

From BBC

Her only power, she felt, was the "nuclear option" of firing the Post Office chairman.

From BBC