Standard Lemma guide

napalm

noun · verb · 4 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • /ˈneɪ.pɑːm/
  • /ˈneɪ.pɑlm/
  • Mid-Atlantic, US: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • Southern-England: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • CMU ARPABET: N EY1 P AA0 M Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.

1

noun

Meaning 1

A highly flammable, viscous substance, designed to stick to the body while burning, used in warfare as an incendiary especially in wooded areas.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: uncountable, usually

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

noun

Meaning 2

Anything very incendiary; dynamite.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: figuratively, uncountable, usually

Examples

  • When leaked, the controversial documents proved to be political napalm.
  • sexual napalm

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

3

verb

Meaning 3

To spray or attack with napalm.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: transitive

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

4

noun

Meaning 4

gasoline jelled with aluminum soaps; highly incendiary liquid used in fire bombs and flamethrowers

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: gasoline, gasolene, gas, petrol

History

Etymology

Formed from na(phthenic) palm(itic) acid, the two original components of the substance.

Across languages

Translations

29 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Basque: napalm — flammable substance
  • Belarusian: напа́лм (napálm) — flammable substance
  • Bulgarian: напа́лм (napálm) — flammable substance
  • Catalan: napalm — flammable substance
  • Chinese Mandarin: 凝固汽油彈 /凝固汽油弹 (nínggù qìyóu dàn) — flammable substance
  • Chinese Mandarin: 燒夷彈 /烧夷弹 (shāoyídàn) — flammable substance
  • Dutch: napalm — flammable substance
  • Esperanto: napalmo — flammable substance
  • Finnish: napalm — flammable substance
  • French: napalm — flammable substance
  • German: Napalm — flammable substance
  • Hindi: नेपाम (nepām) — flammable substance
  • Hungarian: napalm — flammable substance
  • Ido: napalmo — flammable substance
  • Japanese: ナパーム (napāmu) — flammable substance
  • Japanese: ナパーム弾 (napāmu dan) — flammable substance
  • Korean: 네이팜 (neipam) — flammable substance
  • Korean: 나팜 (napam) — flammable substance
  • Macedonian: напалм (napalm) — flammable substance
  • Polish: napalm — flammable substance
  • Portuguese: napalm — flammable substance
  • Russian: напа́лм (napálm) — flammable substance
  • Serbo-Croatian: напалм — flammable substance
  • Serbo-Croatian: napalm — flammable substance
  • Spanish: napalm — flammable substance
  • Swedish: napalm — flammable substance
  • Ukrainian: напа́лм (napálm) — flammable substance
  • Vietnamese: bom napan — flammable substance
  • Vietnamese: napan — flammable substance