Fulminating

ppl a. [f. FULMINATE v. + -ING².] That fulminates.

  1.  Detonating, violently explosive.

  Fulminating gold, mercury, platinum, silver, various fulminates or salts of fulminic acid. Fulminating pane (see quot. 1879). Fulminating powder, formerly, a mixture uf nitre, potash, and sulphur; now sometimes applied to other violently explosive powders, chiefly containing fulminate of mercury.

1646.  Sir T. Browne, Pseud. Ep., II. v. 89. These afford no fulminating report.

1665.  Hooke, Microgr., 35. These I found to have quite lost all their fulminating or flying quality.

1691.  Ray, Creation, I. (1704), 80. For fulminating Engines.

1695.  Woodward, Nat. Hist. Earth, IV. (1723), 227. The Fulminating Damp will take Fire at a Candle, or other Flame.

1794.  J. Hutton, Philos. Light, etc., 211. In the fulminating composition, it is not the power of the explosion which forms the character of this operation; it is the celerity with which that explosive power is formed.

1810.  T. Thomson, A System of Chemistry (ed. 4), II. 12. This powder is fulminating gold; which is composed of five parts of yellow oxide of gold and one part of ammonia. Ibid., 463. He [Mr Howard] has given it the name of fulminating mercury.

1858.  Greener, Gunnery, 22. Nothing can resist the exceeding intensity of the action of fulminating powder.

1879.  Rossiter, Dict. Sci. Terms, Fulminating pane, glass plate coated on each side with tin-foil, which, when electrified, can be discharged with a spark.

1879.  Cassell’s Techn. Educ., IV. 146/2. Fulminating silver, even when moist, will explode by percussion.

  b.  Producing a brilliant flash when ignited.

1676.  Lister, in Ray’s Corr. (1848), 124. The fulminating powder, which the spikes of Muscus Lycopod. yield.

  2.  fig. That thunders or hurls forth censures, denunciations, or the like; also, that is thundered forth.

1626.  T. H[awkins], trans. Caussin’s Holy Crt., 127. Rome, from whence came all the fulminating thunders, and bloudy Edicts agaynst Christians, where the sword of persecurtion was sharpned, to reapen haruest of heads.

a. 1693.  Urquhart, Rabelais, III. xii. 93. A powerful and fulminating Goddess.

1734.  trans. Rollin’s Anc. Hist. (1827), II. II. 91. This fulminating decree.

1790.  Burke, Fr. Rev., 16. All things in this his fulminating bull are not of so innoxious a tendency.

a. 1839.  Praed, Poems (1864), II. 273, ‘A Letter from Eton.’