yellowcake

noun

yel·​low·​cake ˈye-lō-ˌkāk How to pronounce yellowcake (audio)
ˈye-lə-
: partially refined uranium ore that is often used as an intermediate step in the production of nuclear weapons

Examples of yellowcake in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
The monitoring also meant Iran wasn’t able to hide away yellowcake or centrifuges to produce enriched uranium for a covert nuclear-weapons program without the agency knowing about it. Laurence Norman, WSJ, 8 June 2022 Known as yellowcake uranium, the powdered material requires an enrichment process to convert it to a weapons-grade. Tim Newcomb, Popular Mechanics, 16 Mar. 2023 China also has helped Saudi Arabia construct a facility to fabricate uranium yellowcake, an early step along the path to a civil nuclear energy program or a nuclear arms capability, the Journal reported last year. Jared Malsin, WSJ, 23 Dec. 2021 December 5, 2010 - Ali Akbar Salehi, Iran’s atomic chief and acting foreign minister, announces that Iran’s nuclear program is self-sufficient and that Iran has begun producing yellowcake, an intermediate stage in processing uranium. CNN, 19 Aug. 2021 The administration had forged documents stating that Saddam Hussein was in the process of obtaining yellowcake uranium, and the press had dutifully printed the lie. Rebecca Panovka, Harper's Magazine, 20 July 2021 The company will process the ore to extract both yellowcake uranium and a concentrated rare earth carbonite. Zak Podmore, The Salt Lake Tribune, 22 Mar. 2021 Chalmers added that yellowcake produced for nuclear power plants helps the effort to combat global warming. Zak Podmore, The Salt Lake Tribune, 4 Jan. 2021 Lechlitner said the explosion scattered toxic material including asbestos and a refined form of uranium ore called yellowcake. Catherine Herridge, CBS News, 26 Oct. 2020

Word History

First Known Use

1949, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of yellowcake was in 1949

Dictionary Entries Near yellowcake

Cite this Entry

“Yellowcake.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/yellowcake. Accessed 23 Dec. 2024.

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!