2 meanings
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1 —as in:
a volatile situation
Definition
quick to change; or emotionally explosive- He was fired due to his volatile temper.
volatile = emotionally explosive
Other Uses (with this meaning)
- It is a volatile stock market.
- a volatile situation with troops and rioters eager for a confrontation
- My father was a volatile, extremely complicated person, possessed of a brash demeanor that masked deep insecurities.Jon Krakauer -- Into the Wild
- Perhaps his superiors wanted to rid the Imperial Guards of an unstable and venomous soldier, or perhaps they wanted to put his volatility to use.Laura Hillenbrand -- Unbroken
- Now guards, staffers, and counselors converge on the quad in panic, trying to herd this volatile gathering of kids back to their places, but no one will leave.Neal Shusterman -- Unwind
- Princes, however, married women of the people to keep up the morale of our sometimes volatile nation.Kiera Cass -- The Selection
- The doctors told Mother that Shawn's injury might have altered his personality—that in the hospital, he had shown tendencies toward volatility, even violence, and that such changes might be permanent.Tara Westover -- Educated
- But if there is difficulty and volatility in the world of the Tipping Point, there is a large measure of hopefulness as well.Malcolm Gladwell -- The Tipping Point
- Logan said nothing, sensing her volatile state.Nicholas Sparks -- The Lucky One
volatile = emotionally unstable (quick to anger)
volatility = quickness to get angry
volatile = emotionally unstable and unpredictable
volatile = unstable (quick to anger)
volatility = being emotionally explosive
volatility = quickness to change
volatile = emotionally explosive
2 —as in:
a volatile liquid
Definition
evaporating rapidly at normal temperatures and pressuresor:
prone to physically explode
- She is studying the impact of volatile organic compounds on indoor pollution.
volatile = evaporating rapidly at normal temperatures and pressures
Other Uses (with this meaning)
- The country is still too volatile to remove peace-keeping troops.
- The VIX measures market volatility.
- The universe is fluid and volatile.Emerson, Ralph Waldo -- Essays, First Series
- You'll still be volatile, but not as bad as before.Neal Shusterman -- Unwind
- But, nevertheless, it is anything but agreeable to be haunted by a suspicion that one's intellect is dwindling away, or exhaling, without your consciousness, like ether out of a phial; so that, at every glance, you find a smaller and less volatile residuum.Nathaniel Hawthorne -- The Scarlet Letter
- Even a small amount of Imperial gold could be incredibly volatile. Exposed to too much heat or pressure, the stuff would explode with devastating impact...Rick Riordan -- The Blood of Olympus
- It says that alcohol is a colorless volatile liquidDouglas Adams -- The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy
- It was also distilled to a volatile salts for fainting...Melville, Herman -- Moby Dick I-LXVII
- it was heated to evaporate the volatiles
volatile = prone to physically explode
volatile = evaporating
volatile = prone to physically explode
volatile = evaporating rapidly at normal temperatures and pressures
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