Verb (1)
I bolted as I read the winning lottery numbers
the cat bolted for the food dish the minute he spied it
the rabbit bolted when it saw the fox approaching bolted out the cuss word without thinking
the way you bolted those hot dogs, it's no wonder you're feeling a little queasy Adverb
She sat bolt upright, staring straight ahead.
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Noun
In fact, the entire house is held together by nuts-and-bolt joinery.—Lily Templeton, Footwear News, 11 Oct. 2025 Dowdle had seven runs of 11 yards or longer, including lightning bolts covering 53 and 43 yards in the second half that helped spark the Panthers’ comeback from a 17-point, first-half deficit.—Joseph Person, New York Times, 9 Oct. 2025
Verb
Smith-Schuster got up and bolted after Branch, who was being restrained by Chiefs running back Isiah Pacheco.—Michael Gallagher, MSNBC Newsweek, 13 Oct. 2025 Healthcare does not need another scribe bolted onto a generic model.—Andreas Cleve, Fortune, 8 Oct. 2025 See All Example Sentences for bolt
Word History
Etymology
Noun (1)
Middle English, from Old English; akin to Old High German bolz crossbow bolt, and perhaps to Lithuanian beldėti to beat
Verb (2)
Middle English bulten, from Anglo-French buleter, of Germanic origin; akin to Middle High German biuteln to sift, from biutel bag, from Old High German būtil
First Known Use
Noun (1)
before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1b
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