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. Noun (1) the nerve-jangling boom of a car backfiring
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Verb
Iran’s military denied firing on Israel, state media reported — but explosions boomed and sirens sounded across northern Israel midmorning, and an Israeli military official said two Iranian missiles were intercepted. Chicago Tribune, 24 June 2025 Revenues have boomed from approximately $27 billion in fiscal year 2023 to over $130 billion in fiscal year 2025, driven by unprecedented demand for accelerated computing and AI. Preston Fore, Fortune, 24 June 2025
Noun
The artificial intelligence boom is driving accelerated demand for cloud computing services, with enterprises turning to AWS to leverage AI capabilities quickly. Trefis Team, Forbes.com, 25 June 2025 The company has seen soaring demand in the high bandwidth memory, or HBM, market due to the artificial intelligence boom. Ari Levy, CNBC, 25 June 2025 See All Example Sentences for boom

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

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Boom.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/boom. Accessed 1 Jul. 2025.

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

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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