bomb

noun \ ˈbäm \

Definition of bomb

1 a :an explosive device fused to detonate under specified conditions

b :atomic bomb; also :nuclear weapons in general —usually used with the

2 :a vessel for compressed gases: such as

a :a pressure vessel for conducting chemical experiments

b :a container for an aerosol (such as an insecticide) :spray can

3 :a rounded mass of lava exploded from a volcano

4 :a lead-lined container for radioactive material

5 :failure, flop

the play was a bomb

6 British :a large sum of money

7 a British :a great success :hit

b slang :one that is striking or extraordinary —used with the

their new album is the bomb

8 a :a long pass in football

b :a very long shot (as in basketball)

shooting 3-point bombs

; also :home run

9 :something unexpected and unpleasant —often used with drop

dropped a bomb with her resignation

See bomb defined for English-language learners

See bomb defined for kids

Examples of bomb in a Sentence

A bomb went off downtown.
Many bombs were dropped on the city during the war.
They hid a bomb in the building.
countries that have the bomb

Recent Examples of bomb from the Web

Bomb shelter companies across the nation are reporting a boost in sales.

— joe robertson, kansascity, "New fears of nuclear war spark interest in Missouri Minuteman missile shelter," 29 Aug. 2017
The way these two get in cahoots with each other is both cartoonish and often hilarious: Scott, who captures Carlton’s principled but nebbish-y vibe to perfection, makes an excellent foil for Ginn’s raw, comical, f-bomb-dropping vulgarity.

— james hebert, sandiegouniontribune.com, "Ion's 'North' offers of-the-moment laughs and shocks," 28 Aug. 2017
There were bomb threats, security people, press people dressed up as messengers.

— nancy bilyeau, Town & Country, "How Jackie Kennedy Became a Powerful Book Editor After Leaving the White House," 18 Aug. 2017
These repurposed consumer drones could hit vehicles several hundred feet below with bombs adapted from 40mm grenades and could only be stopped by sophisticated U.S. jammers.

— david hambling, Popular Mechanics, "When a Hobby Drone Becomes a Military Sniper," 16 Aug. 2017
An FBI agent posed as someone who could help Varnell build a bomb.

— malaika jabali, Essence.com, "Let's Remember That A White Man Attempted To Bomb An Oklahoma Bank This Week," 16 Aug. 2017
This is a nation which forced more than 100,000 Japanese Americans into internment camps and dropped an atomic bomb on Nagasaki and Hiroshima.

— lara witt, Harper's BAZAAR, "White Liberals Still Don’t Understand White Supremacy," 16 Aug. 2017
Once temperatures hit above 50 degrees consistently in your area, any stagnant water in your yard is a ticking time bomb full of mosquito larvae waiting to buzz.

— jamie wiebe, House Beautiful, "The Sneaky Places Mosquitoes Hide in Your Yard," 6 Aug. 2017
Mr Khattab notes that there have been no bombings in Karachi since his team busted a terrorist bomb factory last year.

— The Economist, "The pushmi-pullyuWhat makes Pakistan so unfathomable," 22 July 2017

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

Origin and Etymology of bomb

French bombe, from Italian bomba, probably from Latin bombus deep hollow sound, from Greek bombos, of imitative origin

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1662

See Words from the same year

bomb Synonyms

Synonyms

failure, bummer, bust, catastrophe, clinker, clunker, debacle (also débâcle), disaster, dud, fiasco, fizzle, flop, frost, lemon, loser, miss, shipwreck, turkey, washout

Antonyms

blockbuster, hit, smash, success, winner

Related Words

also-ran, disappointment, dog, has-been, near miss; botch, hash, mess, muddle, shambles; nonevent; nonstarter

Near Antonyms

corker, crackerjack (also crackajack), dandy, jim-dandy, phenomenon

bomb

verb

Definition of bomb

transitive verb

1 :to attack with or as if with bombs :bombard

The planes successfully bombed their target.

a bombed village

2 :to defeat decisively

3 a :to hit (a ball, puck, or shot) very hard

bomb a home run

bomb a long drive down the fairway

b :to score many runs against (a pitcher)

Allen tried a new slider pitch without success and was bombed in Cincinnati.
—Jack Lang

4 slang :to fail (a test)

I bombed my history exam.

intransitive verb

1 informal :to fall flat :to fail completely

The movie bombed at the box office.

a joke that bombed

2 informal :to move rapidly

a car bombing down the hill

—

bombing

noun

- The city was subjected to heavy bombing during the war.
- suicide bombings

See bomb defined for English-language learners

Examples of bomb in a Sentence

The city was heavily bombed during the war.
The planes flew 200 miles to bomb their target.
The movie bombed at the box office.
The play bombed on Broadway.
He bombed at his first performance.
I completely bombed my math exam.
A car was bombing down the highway.
teenagers bombing around in a convertible

Recent Examples of bomb from the Web

Early in World War II, when Malta was a British possession, Germany and Italy bombed it almost daily.

— roy harris, chicagotribune.com, "Malta, the island nation just below Sicily, is an increasingly popular stopover," 28 Aug. 2017
What price did North Korea pay? Pyongyang got its money; Syria was bombed; and the United States was soon back at the negotiating table in the six-party talks trying, unsuccessfully, to get North Korea to give up its nuclear weapons.

— graham allison, The Atlantic, "The North Korean Threat Beyond ICBMs," 28 Aug. 2017
The movie bombed (though years later, it would be recognized as an eerily prescient classic), but everyone agreed that Lewis, playing the straight man for once, was masterful.

— gary susman, vanityfair.com, "Jerry Lewis, Comedic Force of Nature, Dies at 91," 20 Aug. 2017
During the war with America in the late 1960s, museum officials removed hundreds of artworks for safekeeping, in case Hanoi was bombed by the United States, and commissioned copies to replace them.

— richard c. paddock, New York Times, "Vietnamese Art Has Never Been More Popular. But the Market Is Full of Fakes.," 11 Aug. 2017
The Dar Al-Farooq Islamic Center in Bloomington was bombed early Saturday before morning prayers.

— veronica hilbring, Essence.com, "Almost A Week Later, The Trump Administration Still Refuses To Condemn Minnesota Mosque Attack," 10 Aug. 2017
Gandhi, who also flirted with anti-Semitism, didn’t actually get Ford’s letter until December 8, 1941, writes History.com– the day after the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor, throwing the United States into war.

— kat eschner, Smithsonian, "The Unlikely Bromance Between Henry Ford and Mohandas Gandhi," 26 July 2017
Between 1917 and 1921, houses in Chicago that belonged to a black person, a banker who loaned a black family their mortgage, or a real estate agent who sold a black family their property were bombed at a rate of once every twenty days.

— lincoln anthony blades, Teen Vogue, "Trump's Obsession With Chicago, Explained," 6 July 2017
Like The Dark Crystal, it was panned by critics and bombed at the box office, recouping only $12 million of its $25 million budget.

— marielle wakim, Los Angeles Magazine, "A Quote-Along Version of Labyrinth Is Premiering at the Ace Hotel, and Now We Must Lie Down," 28 June 2017

First Known Use of bomb

1688

bomb Synonyms

Synonyms

barrage, bombard

Antonyms

crawl, creep, poke

Related Words

examine, grill, interrogate, pump, query, question, quiz; debrief; cross-examine; catechize; annoy, harass, hound, pester; flood, inundate

Near Antonyms

dally, dawdle, dillydally, drag, hang (around or out), lag, linger, loiter, poke, tarry; amble, lumber, plod, saunter, shuffle, stroll; decelerate, slow (down or up)

British Definition of BOMB

bomb

noun

British Definition of bomb

:a large sum of money

:a great success :hit

BOMB Defined for English Language Learners

bomb

noun

Definition of bomb for English Language Learners

: a device that is designed to explode in order to injure or kill people or to damage or destroy property
the bomb : nuclear weapons
: something that is a complete failure

bomb

verb

Definition of bomb for English Language Learners

: to attack (a place or people) with a bomb or many bombs
: to fail completely
: to fail (a test)

BOMB Defined for Kids

bomb

noun \ ˈbäm \

Definition of bomb for Students

1 :a hollow case or shell filled with explosive material

2 :a container in which something (as an insecticide) is stored under pressure and from which it is released in a fine spray

3 :something that is a complete failure

The new movie was a bomb.

bomb

verb

Definition of bomb for Students

bombed; bombing

1 :to attack with bombs

2 :to fail completely

His comedy act bombed.

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See words that rhyme with bomb Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for bomb Spanish Central: Translation of bomb Nglish: Translation of bomb for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of bomb for Arabic speakers Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about bomb

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bomb

Definition of bomb

bombing

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bomb Synonyms

Synonyms

Antonyms

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British Definition of BOMB

bomb

British Definition of bomb

BOMB Defined for English Language Learners

bomb

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bomb

Definition of bomb for English Language Learners

BOMB Defined for Kids

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