1
as in flaring (up)
to become very angry
she blew up at everybody after a very long and very bad day
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in exploding
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 shattering
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
as in cracking up
to praise or publicize lavishly and often excessively
the advertisement blows the new soda up to the point where I half expected to be transported to a higher level of consciousness
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of blowing up
Ripley was honored for a heroic effort to halt the advance of North Vietnamese forces by blowing up a crucial bridge in 1972.
—
Arkansas Online,
20 June 2026
Ripley was honored for a heroic effort to halt the advance of North Vietnamese forces by blowing up a crucial bridge in 1972.
—
ABC News,
18 June 2026
Navarrette is blowing up right now.
—
Lisa Lockwood,
Footwear News,
17 June 2026
SpaceX has been blowing up Starship rockets left and right, and the space nerds seem to be cheering them on.
—
Eric Berger,
ArsTechnica,
29 May 2026
At the time, teen powerhouses like Aaliyah, Brandy, and Monica were blowing up the charts and Interscope was hoping Mýa could be their own proverbial cash cow.
—
Selena Fragassi,
SPIN,
18 May 2026
About to hit rock bottom, Peter is therefore oblivious to the +44 numbers that are blowing up his phone, until the caller — a British clubber called Edison (the fantastic Kirby Howell-Baptiste) — arrives on his doorstep.
—
Damon Wise,
Deadline,
15 May 2026
Now, the Swedish flatpack giant believes its long-elusive obsession is, at long last, blowing up.
—
Jack Bantock,
CNN Money,
14 May 2026
The wires are crossing, the cover stories are blowing up.
—
Emily Longeretta,
Variety,
23 Apr. 2026
Arkansas Online,
20 June 2026
Ripley was honored for a heroic effort to halt the advance of North Vietnamese forces by blowing up a crucial bridge in 1972.
—
ABC News,
18 June 2026
Navarrette is blowing up right now.
—
Lisa Lockwood,
Footwear News,
17 June 2026
SpaceX has been blowing up Starship rockets left and right, and the space nerds seem to be cheering them on.
—
Eric Berger,
ArsTechnica,
29 May 2026
At the time, teen powerhouses like Aaliyah, Brandy, and Monica were blowing up the charts and Interscope was hoping Mýa could be their own proverbial cash cow.
—
Selena Fragassi,
SPIN,
18 May 2026
About to hit rock bottom, Peter is therefore oblivious to the +44 numbers that are blowing up his phone, until the caller — a British clubber called Edison (the fantastic Kirby Howell-Baptiste) — arrives on his doorstep.
—
Damon Wise,
Deadline,
15 May 2026
Now, the Swedish flatpack giant believes its long-elusive obsession is, at long last, blowing up.
—
Jack Bantock,
CNN Money,
14 May 2026
The wires are crossing, the cover stories are blowing up.
—
Emily Longeretta,
Variety,
23 Apr. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for blowing up
Verb
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The purists were always going to take issue with a Prancing Horse that had an electric powertrain instead of snarling internal combustion engine, but its unorthodox design, courtesy of Jony Ivy’s LoveFrom studio, has received just as much criticism.
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In fact, none of them are shy about their glee, leaving Kayda crying, Trinity snarling, and Melanie calculating.
Verb
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True to its name, Swift is designed to pivot quickly to capture late-breaking astronomical events such as gamma ray bursts and exploding stars.
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Old Herald clippings from 1986 reported about homeowners’ toilets and sinks smelling like gas, a 3-year-old getting rashes and fevers from drinking the well water and fear of dryers exploding.
Verb
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SpaceX’s record-shattering IPO has minted thousands of new millionaires, unleashing a wave of high-end home shoppers poised to reshape Southern California’s already tight coastal housing markets.
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The record-shattering heat waves in Europe last week and in the western US in March are two recent examples.
Verb
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Mark Toothaker, a stallion sales manager for Spendthrift Farm in Lexington, Kentucky, was on the couch cracking up with his wife, Malory, about the whiffed field goal and consequential turnover.
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The dogs were confused, not sure whether to attack or run for cover, and Susan was cracking up.
Verb
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Younger, more far left candidates across the nation, from California to Indiana, are running this year to try and oust older, longtime congressional incumbents — angering Democratic Party leaders.
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But Schnur said the governor likely also has concerns about angering one of his biggest backers.
Verb
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In one video a drone runs into protective netting at least 50 feet above the target and detonating prematurely.
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Investigators found that Aliji intended to drive a Volkswagen Beetle equipped with fake police sirens and flashing blue lights toward crowds outside the venue before detonating explosives concealed inside a Red Bull can.
Verb
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Video and photos shared on social media appear to show the aircraft plummeting to the ground after smashing a large hole in the 108-story CITIC Tower, located in the Chinese capital's business district.
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Also in 2007, Spencer was sentenced concurrently to seven years in prison for choking a woman, slamming her head to the ground, and robbing her of her cellphone, and for smashing into a woman's car and ransacking it, prosecutors said.
Verb
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During his press conference announcing its closure, DeSantis defended the cost and argued that if the state had not built Alligator Alcatraz, those 21,000 individuals captured by ICE and local police would have been released.
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Moreover, Devonté Hynes’ score, which is both anxious and playful, does the tonal heavy lifting without ever announcing itself, which is something the music branch can discover and appreciate.
Cite this Entry
“Blowing up.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/blowing%20up. Accessed 29 Jun. 2026.
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