time bomb meaning and definition

TIME BOMB noun

Definition of time bomb (noun)

1. a problematic situation that will eventually become dangerous if not addressed
   • "India is a demographic time bomb"; "the refugee camp is a ticking bomb waiting to go off"
   • synonyms: ticking bomb
2. a bomb that has a detonating mechanism that can be set to go off at a particular time
   • synonyms: infernal machine