Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • intransitive verb To issue a thunderous verbal attack or denunciation.
  • intransitive verb To explode or detonate.
  • intransitive verb To issue (a denunciation, for example) thunderously.
  • intransitive verb To cause to explode.
  • noun An explosive salt of fulminic acid, especially fulminate of mercury.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • To lighten; flash with detonation.
  • Hence To explode with a loud noise; detonate.
  • Figuratively, to issue threats, denunciations, censures, and the like, with or as with authority.
  • In refining, to become suddenly bright and uniform in color: said of melted gold mixed with antimony.
  • To cause to explode.
  • Figuratively, to utter or send out, as a denunciation or censure; especially, to send out, as a menace or censure, by ecclesiastical authority.
  • noun A compound formed by the union of a base with fulminic acid.
  • noun An explosion; a sudden and explosive action.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • noun A salt of fulminic acid. See under fulminic.
  • noun A fulminating powder.
  • noun an explosive compound of gold; -- called also fulminating gold, and aurum fulminans.
  • transitive verb To cause to explode.
  • transitive verb To utter or send out with denunciations or censures; -- said especially of menaces or censures uttered by ecclesiastical authority.
  • intransitive verb To thunder; hence, to make a loud, sudden noise; to detonate; to explode with a violent report.
  • intransitive verb To issue or send forth decrees or censures with the assumption of supreme authority; to thunder forth menaces.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • verb intransitive, figuratively To make a verbal attack.
  • verb transitive, figuratively To issue a denunciation.
  • verb To strike with lightning; to cause to explode.
  • noun chemistry Any salt or ester of fulminic acid; mostly explosive.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • verb cause to explode violently and with loud noise
  • verb come on suddenly and intensely
  • verb criticize severely
  • noun a salt or ester of fulminic acid

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[Middle English fulminaten, from Latin fulmināre, fulmināt-, to strike with lightning, from fulmen, fulmin-, lightning that strikes; see bhel- in Indo-European roots.]

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From Latin fulminātus, past participle of fulminō ("lighten, hurl or strike with lightning"), from fulmen ("lightning which strikes and sets on fire, thunderbolt"), from earlier *fulgmen, *fulgimen, from fulgō, fulgeō ("flash, lighten"). More at fulgent.

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Examples

  • Mercury fulminate is very sensitive to shock, friction, and sparks.

    Explosive Crystal | Impact Lab 2007

  • Not sure if you're being funny or not, but for those playing at home I will simply note that in modern usage "fulminate" usually means "criticize acidly" ...

    Imagethief 2008

  • Not sure if you're being funny or not, but for those playing at home I will simply note that in modern usage "fulminate" usually means "criticize acidly" ...

    Imagethief 2008

  • He says the tube contains fulminate of mercury, and the word 'fulminate' means to flash like lightning. "

    Hot Money Francis, Dick 1987

  • Vatican apologists and strict adherents will fulminate on and on about the first priest, Peter, receiving the keys to the church and such, but even if those who ignore the several weak links and breaks in the chain of apostolic succession generally concede that Peter himself was a bit of a hot-head, the great mistake-maker of the apostles.

    Michele Somerville: Roy Bourgeois Detained At The Vatican For The Crime Of Primacy Of Conscience Michele Somerville 2011

  • This year I was too busy to fulminate about it, too busy to remonstrate or dismiss or despair, and now the opportunity is gone forever.

    What I've missed Joel Achenbach 2011

  • Vatican apologists and strict adherents will fulminate on and on about the first priest, Peter, receiving the keys to the church and such, but even if those who ignore the several weak links and breaks in the chain of apostolic succession generally concede that Peter himself was a bit of a hot-head, the great mistake-maker of the apostles.

    Michele Somerville: Roy Bourgeois Detained At The Vatican For The Crime Of Primacy Of Conscience Michele Somerville 2011

  • Echoing Hayek and Beck, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, House Speaker John Boehner, Rep. Darrell Issa, and the Tea Party can fulminate all they want that government policies to make corporations behave more responsibly -- such as the minimum wage, consumer and environmental protection laws, rules to improve workplace safety, regulations to restrain Wall Street abuses, and health care reform -- are "job killers."

    Peter Dreier: How Do Wrong Economic Ideas Become Conventional Wisdom? Peter Dreier 2011

  • They will pitch a hissy fit for years, and then quietly accept and mainstream the very ideas against which they used to fulminate.

    Think Progress » Cheney endorses effort to repeal DADT: ‘It strikes me that it’s time to reconsider the policy.’ 2010

  • Let the rejectionists fulminate and sputter until they wear their vocal cords out.

    mjh's blog — 2009 — October 2009

Comments

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  • Is laissez passer a requirement to collaborate?

    June 28, 2009

  • From far and near hear them all ululate

    As grievances endlessly pullulate.

    The deeds that offend

    They cannot amend

    But, oh, are they able to fulminate!

    September 12, 2017

  • If I were culminate or aluminate I'd be, well, fulminating.

    September 13, 2017

  • On such things do they ruminate in Oz.

    September 14, 2017