billow

noun bil·low \ ˈbi-(ˌ)lō \

Definition of billow

1 :wave; especially :a great wave or surge of water

the rolling billows of the sea

2 :a rolling mass (as of flame or smoke) that resembles a high wave

Billows of smoke poured out of the building.

billows of fog

—

billowy

play \ˈbi-lə-wē\ adjective

See billow defined for English-language learners

See billow defined for kids

Examples of billow in a Sentence

Billows of smoke poured out of the burning building.
the rolling billows of the sea

Recent Examples of billow from the Web

The engine explodes into flames and black smoke billows from the jet.

— chicago tribune staff, chicagotribune.com, "Newly released video shows plane's engine exploding on O'Hare runway," 4 Aug. 2017
Ash clouds billow, follow the wind, and rain down in millimeters, inches, sometimes feet-thick layers of dust and rock.

— erin mckittrick, Alaska Dispatch News, "Digging up Alaska’s volcanic secrets," 29 July 2017
A North Korean factory billows smoke near the Yalu river near Sinuiju, opposite the Chinese border city of Dandong, on April 16, 2017.

— bill powell, MSNBC Newsweek, "Will Trump Stop the 10 Chinese Companies Supplying North Korea's Nuclear Program?," 13 July 2017
However, there are also more colorful takes, like turquoise and gold, or even riffs on Sienna marble with billows of yellows, purples, reds, and blues.

— kelsi zimmerman, Marie Claire, "Just Try Not to Get Lost in This Gorgeous Marble Lip Art," 2 May 2017
At 7:50 p.m., as an audience of 1,500 gazed up at a St. Petersburg drawing room rendered in Technicolor reds and blues, a thundering detonation flashed from orchestra row GG, followed by billows of ashen smoke.

— michael cannell, Smithsonian, "Unmasking the Mad Bomber," 2 May 2017
Sit at the chef’s counter, directly in front of the action where flames lick up from the grill, steam billows from pots, and pans clank against the stove as cooks in black jackets maneuver among the fire and sharp knives.

— brad a. johnson, Orange County Register, "Broadway: No. 29 best place to eat in Orange County," 7 Apr. 2017
Most are crowned with billows of frosting: The higher the peaks, the more crowd-pleasing the result.

— melissa clark melissa clark melissa clark, New York Times, "A Cupcake Confident in Its Own Skin," 3 Feb. 2017
All chicken soups are alike at the start: a dead bird in water, boiling flesh, a billow of steam, grains of salt in the cook’s palm.

— talia lavin, The New Yorker, "Leaving a Religion and a Marriage, and Gaining a Chicken Soup," 23 Jan. 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'billow.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of billow

Old Norse bylgja; akin to Old High German balg bag — more at belly

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1552

See Words from the same year

billow Synonyms

Synonyms

wave, surge, swell

Related Words

sea (s); surf; breaker, whitecap; comber, curl; riffle, ripple, wavelet; ground swell, roller; tidal wave, tsunami

billow

verb

Definition of billow

intransitive verb

1 :to rise or roll in waves or surges

the billowing sea

2 :to bulge or swell out (as through action of the wind)

billowing clouds

… the flags … billowed out in pride …
—G. B. Oxnam

transitive verb

:to cause to billow

a field of burning grass billowing thick black clouds of smoke into the sky
—Donald Windham

See billow defined for English-language learners

Examples of billow in a Sentence

the curtains in the open windows billowed in the summer wind

Recent Examples of billow from the Web

Lana Del Rey’s next performance probably won’t feature her wrapped in an American flag or show one billowing in the wind.

— hunter harris, The Cut, "Lana Del Rey Is Cooling It With the Americana Imagery Now That Trump Is in Office," 19 July 2017
The driver is heard talking on a radio and then the van begins to travel forward as billowing black smoke looms in front of it.

— debbi baker, sandiegouniontribune.com, "Santa Barbara news crew takes scary ride through Whittier fire," 10 July 2017
MORE TROUBLE Six laps after the Keselowski-Johnson-Bowyer crash sent smoke billowing across the infield, Kasey Kahne and Trevor Bayne tangled in Turn 1 and hit the wall in another dramatic dustup.

— tom groeschen, The Courier-Journal, "Truex Jr. breaks Busch, Keselowski stranglehold at Kentucky Speedway," 9 July 2017
A billowing cloak that faded from gray to blue was fastened by a large fairytale black velvet bow.

— thomas adamson, The Seattle Times, "Fendi stuns with Jenner and Hadid fur show to cap couture," 5 July 2017
Volunteer firefighter Joe Robinson tweeted a photo of the blaze, which shows smoke billowing in the distance.

— CBS News, "More than 100,000 chickens killed in egg farm fire, authorities say," 3 July 2017
Although intimidating looking Kuznetsov is old and suffers from a variety of issues, including a breakdown in the Bay of Biscay and issuing huge pillars of billowing black smoke.

— kyle mizokami, Popular Mechanics, "U.K., Russia Fight Over Whose Bad Aircraft Carriers Are Better," 29 June 2017
A scrapyard fire on North Tryon Street has produced billowing black smoke visible from throughout uptown Charlotte on Monday afternoon.

— joe marusak, charlotteobserver, "Billowing black smoke from scrapyard fire visible from uptown," 26 June 2017
Baez depicts Laveau as a vision of abundance, defined by the billowing kinks of her hair, which fill the 61/2 -foot-tall gouache and graphite picture to its wavy edges.

— lori waxman, chicagotribune.com, "This is what intersectional feminist art looks like," 21 June 2017

Origin and Etymology of billow

see ¹billow

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1592

See Words from the same year

billow Synonyms

Synonyms

bag, balloon, beetle, belly, bulge, bunch, jut, overhang, poke, pooch [chiefly dialect], pouch, pout, project, protrude, stand out, start, stick out, swell

Related Words

dome; blow up, inflate; dilate, distend, expand; mushroom, snowball; elongate, extend, lengthen, stretch

Near Antonyms

compress, condense, constrict, contract, shrink

BILLOW Defined for English Language Learners

billow

noun

Definition of billow for English Language Learners

: a moving cloud or mass of smoke, steam, etc.
: a large wave

billow

verb

Definition of billow for English Language Learners

: to move as a large cloud or mass
: to be pushed outward by air
: to rise or roll in waves

BILLOW Defined for Kids

billow

noun bil·low \ ˈbi-lō \

Definition of billow for Students

1 :a large wave

… the billows rose and fell unbroken.
—Robert Louis Stevenson, Treasure Island

2 :a moving cloud or mass (as of smoke or flame)

billow

verb

Definition of billow for Students

billowed; billowing

1 :to rise or roll in large waves

the billowing ocean

2 :to move as a large cloud or mass

Smoke billowed from the chimney.

3 :to bulge or swell out

Sails billowed in the breeze.

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billow

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Origin and Etymology of billow

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billow

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