blowup 1 of 2

blow up

2 of 2

verb

1
2
as in to detonate
to break open or into pieces usually because of internal pressure the building blew up because of a gas leak

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

3
as in to smash
to cause to break open or into pieces by or as if by an explosive blew up the biggest rocks and then cleared them away

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

4

Example Sentences

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.
Recent Examples of blowup
Noun
Zelensky left the White House last week without signing a bilateral mineral deal after a blowup in the Oval Office that dimmed the chances of a peace agreement with Russia. Mabinty Quarshie, Washington Examiner - Political News and Conservative Analysis About Congress, the President, and the Federal Government, 5 Mar. 2025 Another official said that, had Zelenskyy kept his disagreements behind closed doors, the blowup wouldn't have happened. Jennifer Jacobs, CBS News, 1 Mar. 2025
Verb
The song blew up partly because people devised a choreography for it, and a user deployed AI to make The Beastly Senior wiggle to it. Kieran Press-Reynolds, Pitchfork, 14 May 2025 The Big Hero 6: The Series actor, who spent one season as a cast member and writer on the NBC sketch series, opened up about how scoring tickets to a hockey game during his time at the show blew up in his face after costar Kenan Thompson had to bow out of going with him due to a family illness. Jillian Sederholm, EW.com, 12 May 2025 See All Example Sentences for blowup
Recent Examples of Synonyms for blowup
Noun
  • One of his favorite features of Dubai is the food scene, Ksebati says.
    Kamaron McNair Mickey Todiwala, CNBC, 12 May 2025
  • Despite what the title of the anthology may suggest, Lucasfilm Animation isn't glorifying mercenaries and bounty hunters here… even if most of this episode is an awesome, explosive heist scene.
    Fran Ruiz, Space.com, 12 May 2025
Noun
  • The eruption can also form new thermal vents and offer a place for these organisms to repopulate.
    Monica Cull, Discover Magazine, 16 May 2025
  • Flames coach Kelly Nangle did not seem surprised by O’Brien’s eruption.
    Edward Lee, Baltimore Sun, 10 May 2025
Verb
  • The English-for-truckers push has particularly angered me, though.
    Gustavo Arellano, Los Angeles Times, 7 May 2025
  • Any effort to rename the body of water would likely deeply anger Iran, which was historically called Persia, and perhaps other Middle Eastern states as well.
    Dave Goldiner, New York Daily News, 7 May 2025
Verb
  • What To Know India first tested its nuclear weapons in 1974, becoming the sixth country to detonate a nuclear weapon.
    Nick Mordowanec John Feng, MSNBC Newsweek, 30 Apr. 2025
  • Her goal is to plant Eva into the lives of the perfect couple like a bomb, set to detonate at their most vulnerable moment.
    Ryan Coleman, EW.com, 30 Apr. 2025
Verb
  • Mexican soldiers wearing gas masks and white Hazmat suits smash through the remaining equipment in sweltering 96-degree Fahrenheit heat, stopping occasionally to mop up sweat pouring from their faces.
    Isobel Yeung, CNN Money, 2 May 2025
  • Two pitches later, Giolito missed with another hanging changeup and Alejandro Kirk smashed it for a solo homer.
    Jen McCaffrey, New York Times, 1 May 2025
Verb
  • However, experts say the polygraph is not everything it is cracked up to be.
    Emily Hallas, The Washington Examiner, 29 Apr. 2025
  • The comic had plenty of movie-specific one-liners that cracked up the audience of Hollywood A-listers.
    Ethan Shanfeld, Variety, 2 Mar. 2025
Noun
  • The chute opens, and rambunctious No. 2 bursts out with an impatient huff.
    Phillip Valys, Sun Sentinel, 15 Mar. 2025
  • Volunteers were charged around 25 cents per huff, bringing in good profit for those who’d invested in the necessary gas tanks, tubes, and breathing bags.
    Oshan Jarow, Vox, 7 Dec. 2018
Noun
  • Residents living near Srinagar city’s airport, which is also an air base, said they were rattled by the explosions and booming sound of jets.
    Riazat Butt, Chicago Tribune, 10 May 2025
  • Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir Omar Abdullah said in an X post that explosions were heard in the northern Indian state’s capital Srinagar just hours after both nations agreed to maintain a ceasefire.
    Bloomberg News, Boston Herald, 10 May 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Blowup.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/blowup. Accessed 20 May. 2025.

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