boom

1 of 3

verb

boomed; booming; booms

intransitive verb

1
: to make a deep hollow sound
2
a
: to increase in importance, popularity, or esteem
b
: to experience a sudden rapid growth and expansion usually with an increase in prices
business was booming
c
: to develop rapidly in population and importance
California boomed when gold was discovered there
d
: to increase greatly in size or number
the population boomed

transitive verb

1
: to cause to resound
often used with out
his voice booms out the lyrics
2
: to cause a rapid growth or increase of : boost
3
: to hit or kick forcefully
boom a punt

boom

2 of 3

noun (1)

1
: a booming sound or cry
often used interjectionally to indicate suddenness
then boom, he was fired
2
: a rapid expansion or increase: such as
a
: a general movement in support of a candidate for office
b
: rapid settlement and development of a town or district
c
: a rapid widespread expansion of economic activity
d
: an upsurge in activity, interest, or popularity
a folk music boom

boom

3 of 3

noun (2)

1
: a long spar used to extend the foot of a sail
2
a
: a chain or line of connected floating timbers extended across a river, lake, or harbor (as to obstruct passage or catch floating objects)
b
: a temporary floating barrier used to contain an oil spill
3
a
: a long beam projecting from the mast of a derrick to support or guide cargo
b
: a long more or less horizontal supporting arm or brace (as for holding a microphone)
4
: a spar or outrigger connecting the tail surfaces and the main supporting structure of an aircraft

Examples of boom in a Sentence

Verb the sound of the bass drum booming His voice boomed out across the congregation. She boomed commands from the stern of the ship. “What's going on here?” he boomed. Housing construction has boomed in the past year. Last year we almost had to close the store, but now business is booming.
Recent Examples on the Web
Verb
The number of migrants from Africa, China and the Middle East coming through the Darién Gap has boomed in the past two years, but is less than 8 percent of the total. Ken Bensinger Federico Rios, New York Times, 20 Mar. 2024 At Ooltewah Nursery and Landscape Co. in Chattanooga, Tennessee, which has been in business for 35 years, sales boomed during the pandemic and haven’t slowed down since. Mae Anderson, Quartz, 19 Mar. 2024 Hui founded Evergrande in 1996, and the company grew as China’s economy boomed and more Chinese turned to property as an investment. Lionel Lim, Fortune Asia, 19 Mar. 2024 With so much drawing visitors to town, Nashville's hotel industry has boomed over the past decade, with both major brand properties and independent boutique hotels filling the city's real estate. Stefanie Waldek, Travel + Leisure, 19 Mar. 2024 McIlroy eventually took his shot from next to the water at the start of the fairway, booming his approach some 230 yards before putting for bogey. Jack Bantock, CNN, 14 Mar. 2024 The movement is diverse, in part because classical education has boomed among homeschoolers, who run the gamut from serious athletes to kids with learning differences to conservative Christians. Emma Green, The New Yorker, 11 Mar. 2024 Fire officials raced to put out a massive fire as hundreds of explosions boomed in Clinton Township, around 25 miles north of downtown Detroit, at around 9 p.m. Monday. Elissa Robinson, USA TODAY, 5 Mar. 2024 Women’s college hoops booms as a sport, and Clark has led the surge of interest, becoming a one-woman economic force who sells out arenas and sends after-market ticket prices skyrocketing. Greg Cote, Miami Herald, 4 Mar. 2024
Noun
Elsbeth is a time traveler from an antique land before the boom of Peak TV. Phillip MacIak, New York Times, 21 Mar. 2024 That’s a decent level of output stacked against 2023, but overall industry numbers pale in comparison to the great TV boom of 2021 and 2022. Christi Carras, Los Angeles Times, 21 Mar. 2024 The luxury boom of the pandemic era has turned into a bust, hurting some of the industry’s most prominent players. Prarthana Prakash, Fortune Europe, 20 Mar. 2024 Within the last decade, advancements in gear technology, a rising cost of lift tickets, and a desire to escape crowds have resulted in a boom in backcountry skiing. Josh Laskin, Condé Nast Traveler, 20 Mar. 2024 The promise of Chips Act funding has helped accelerate a tech boom in Maricopa County, where dozens of future suppliers to the chip factories are also setting up shop. Jeanne Whalen, Washington Post, 20 Mar. 2024 And as other restaurant chains have struggled to find workers, Chipotle recently underwent a hiring boom, bringing on 19,000 seasonal employees for its busy season (which runs from March through May). Chris Morris, Fortune, 20 Mar. 2024 The trend itself wouldn't achieve mainstream popularity in the United States until the boom of commercial air travel during the late 1960s, early 1970s. Shelby Ying Hyde, Vogue, 19 Mar. 2024 Contractor James Wheeler was rigging down a boom of heavy equipment in Norfolk Southern’s rail yard when a fellow contractor’s mistake resulted in Wheeler having three fingers on his right hand amputated. Topher Sanders, ProPublica, 13 Mar. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'boom.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Verb

Middle English bomben, bummen, of imitative origin

Noun (2)

Dutch, tree, beam; akin to Old High German boum tree — more at beam

First Known Use

Verb

15th century, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 1

Noun (1)

circa 1500, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun (2)

1627, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of boom was in the 15th century

Dictionary Entries Near boom

Cite this Entry

“Boom.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/boom. Accessed 29 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

boom

1 of 3 noun
1
: a long pole used especially to stretch the bottom of a sail
2
a
: a long beam sticking out from the mast of a derrick to support or guide something that is being lifted
b
: a long arm used to move a microphone
3
: a line of connected floating timbers (as across a river) to obstruct passage or catch floating objects

boom

2 of 3 verb
1
: to make a deep hollow rumbling sound
2
a
: to increase in importance or popularity
b
: to experience a boom (as in growth)

boom

3 of 3 noun
1
: a booming sound or cry
2
: a rapid increase in growth, popularity, or prosperity
especially : a rapid widespread expansion of business
Etymology

Noun

from Dutch boom "tree, wooden beam"

Verb

a word imitating the sound

More from Merriam-Webster on boom

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