radioactive

American  

[rey-dee-oh-ak-tiv] / ˌreɪ di oʊˈæk tɪv /

adjective

1. Physics, Chemistry. of, relating to, exhibiting, or caused by radioactivity.

   A pressing issue in post-Soviet Russia is safe long-term storage of radioactive waste, from both military and civilian applications.

2. relating to or being a person, topic, or matter that is likely to provoke intense negative reactions or disagreement.

   The option of raising taxes to fund these expenditures is a politically radioactive approach that a majority of state policymakers have avoided.

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radioactive British  

/ ˌreɪdɪəʊˈæktɪv /

adjective

1. exhibiting, using, or concerned with radioactivity

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radioactive Cultural  

1. A descriptive term for a material made up of atoms in which radioactivity occurs.

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Usage

What does radioactive mean? Radioactive describes something that exhibits or is caused by radioactivity. If something is radioactive, it emits radiation, which usually takes the form of electromagnetic waves or fast-moving elementary particles, such as protons or neutrons.While low doses of radiation are usually harmless, being exposed to large amounts of radiation will most likely kill you. For this reason, highly radioactive materials are often considered very dangerous and will only be handled by experts.Example: The radioactive waste produced by nuclear power plants can damage the environment. 

Other Word Forms

• nonradioactive adjective
• radioactively adverb
• unradioactive adjective

Etymology

Origin of radioactive

First recorded in 1895–1900; radio- + active

Example Sentences

The nonrenewable gas is produced by radioactive decay deep under the earth and escapes into space once released.

From The Wall Street Journal

The extraction of the material would likely need to be conducted by an elite special operations team specially trained to remove radioactive material from a conflict zone.

From The Wall Street Journal

Fusion, the reaction that powers the sun, has long been considered the ultimate clean-energy prize: potentially limitless electricity without greenhouse gases or radioactive waste.

From The Wall Street Journal

Amundsen’s work is in keeping with the rest of the show, which fills two halls at the liberal arts school with visual and multimedia works that probe the persistence of radioactive materials.

From Los Angeles Times

Through all of this, the film remains focused on human experience, rendered with something approaching optimism despite the radioactive gloom that surrounds it.

From The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• contaminated
• dangerous
• hot