Meanings
plural TNTs
- abbreviationAbbreviation of trinitrotoluene (an explosive substance used in blasting)
"We have grown accustomed to a deadly paradox: the world's greatest megatonnage of TNT is buried in the heart of the earth's most productive agricultural area.
1988 September 9, Harold Henderson, “The City File”, in Chicago Reader - informalerroneousDynamite or any weak explosive.
- PhilippinesinformalAn illegal immigrant.
These illegal immigrants are popularly known as “TNTs,” or tago ng tago (literally, “hide and hide”). Some married American citizens to legalize their stay, while others paid for “green card” marriages.
2009, Joaquin Jay Gonzalez, Filipino American Faith in Action: Immigration, Religion, and Civic Engagement, NYU Press, →ISBN, page 24
- abbreviationinitialismInitialism of Turner Network Television, a U.S. television channel.
Synonyms & antonyms
nounexplosive consisting of a yellow crystalline compound that is a flammable toxic derivative of toluene
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
- Tagalogtago nang tago
- EnglishTNT
All senses by acronymy or initialism formation or by metonymic relation thereto. The third sense is an initialism of Tagalog tago nang tago (literally “hide and hide”).
More words from Tagalog
Full word history & related roots →Rhymes & wordplay
Anagrams
Cite this entry
TNT. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/TNT
“TNT.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/TNT. Accessed November 2, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “TNT,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/TNT.
Source: TNT on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.