: a frozen dessert usually containing ice cream and formed in layers in a mold

bombé

2 of 2

adjective

bom·​bé (ˌ)bäm-ˈbā How to pronounce bombé (audio)
(ˌ)bōⁿ-
variants or bombe
: having outward curving lines
usually used of furniture

Examples of bombe 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.
Noun
These techniques are designed to frustrate even the immense potential of quantum computing, a technology light-years beyond the electromechanical bombe that Turing used to break the German Enigma cipher. IEEE Spectrum, 29 Jan. 2025 The bombe chest, or as the French call it, the commode, is standard. Charlotte Observer, 1 Feb. 2024 The Bletchley Declaration is, in itself, nowhere near as much of a game changer as Turing’s bombe was. Bydavid Meyer, Fortune, 1 Nov. 2023 On a recent afternoon, the green velvet banquette hosts a younger crowd for asparagus canapes, coronation chicken salad, vanilla macarons, chocolate bombes, and the requisite scones. Globe Staff, BostonGlobe.com, 10 May 2023 What was the bombe machine? San Diego Union-Tribune, 14 Mar. 2021 The fish is lacquered like an antique bombe chest, with smooth mahogany curves and gnarled curlicues of batter along the edges. Mike Sutter, San Antonio Express-News, 22 Oct. 2021 Right, the now-famous bombe machines enabled Allied cryptographers to decode more than 3,000 enemy messages per day. Tony Rothman, Discover Magazine, 26 Aug. 2015 The technical challenge also proved daunting as the bakers were tasked with making a summer pudding bombe. Antonia Debianchi, Peoplemag, 18 Nov. 2022

Word History

Etymology

Noun

borrowed from French, literally, "bomb" — more at bomb entry 1

Adjective

French, from bombe

First Known Use

Noun

1878, in the meaning defined above

Adjective

1874, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of bombe was in 1874

Dictionary Entries Near bombe

Cite this Entry

“Bombe.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/bombe. Accessed 15 Feb. 2025.

Medical Definition

bombé

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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