1
as in scene
an outburst or display of excited anger
the boss had another blowup when someone fouled up the copy machine
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
1
as in to anger
to become very angry
she blew up at everybody after a very long and very bad day
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
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
as in to crack 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 blowup
Baz Bamigboye, Deadline, 27 Nov. 2025
But with no obvious blowups or scandals this time, some traders think the current drop is more about technicals and confidence than systemic cracks.
—Emily Nicolle, Fortune, 23 Nov. 2025
Katherine Thompson, New York Daily News, 2 Mar. 2026
Things finally blew up for the app in the second to last episode, with founder Whitney (Max Minghella) in free fall and Harper primed for victory.
—Meg Walters, Glamour, 2 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for blowup
Noun
At street level though, Shields’s name is emblazoned in a blowup of a quote about his performance that ran in this column.
—Baz Bamigboye, Deadline, 27 Nov. 2025
But with no obvious blowups or scandals this time, some traders think the current drop is more about technicals and confidence than systemic cracks.
—Emily Nicolle, Fortune, 23 Nov. 2025
Verb
The Gotham Organization now seeks to blow up these commitments through a sweeping rezoning that would remove the park designation, narrow the public walkway, and permit 56-story and 41-story luxury towers flush against the park on the MTA land, which the agency tentatively has agreed to lease.
—Katherine Thompson, New York Daily News, 2 Mar. 2026
Things finally blew up for the app in the second to last episode, with founder Whitney (Max Minghella) in free fall and Harper primed for victory.
—Meg Walters, Glamour, 2 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for blowup
Recent Examples of Synonyms for blowup
Noun
-
Estrada, framed at the register by detergents and a stack of the New York Times as dog-walkers and scene kids browse in the dusky afternoon, is an anthropologist of sorts.—
Jason LeCras,
Los Angeles Times,
9 Mar. 2026
-
The food scene here is also worth diving into.—
Lauren Dana Ellman,
Travel + Leisure,
8 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
Watched behind his closed eyelids the eruption of strange visual forms, shapes of light blooming and disintegrating, blue green and yellow.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
9 Mar. 2026
-
Her message endured the catastrophic eruption of Mount Vesuvius, centuries of burial beneath volcanic ash, and the slow fade of time itself.—
Ryan Brennan,
Charlotte Observer,
9 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
The two sat up front and refused to move, angering the driver, who stormed off at every stop, all through the night.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
6 Mar. 2026
-
The policy coincided with hurricane season, and relief efforts in states such as Missouri, North Carolina, and California were delayed, angering the public and, in many cases, their Republican representatives.—
Jonathan Blitzer,
New Yorker,
6 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Advertisement Christine Adams Courtesy of Apple TV Lang gets off the train and, once at a safe distance, detonates the explosive.—
Barry Levitt,
Time,
4 Mar. 2026
-
Experts also reported little evidence that Iran is actively resuming its efforts to enrich uranium, let alone building a bomb-detonating mechanism.—
Lorraine Ali,
Los Angeles Times,
1 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Wearing hooded sweatshirts and full-face masks, the robbers ordered employees to one part of the room at gunpoint before two of them smashed the glass display cases with sledgehammers, The Charlotte Observer previously reported.—
Nick Sullivan
March 7,
Charlotte Observer,
7 Mar. 2026
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Rocco-Herrmann/Getty Images After the price of silver smashed through a record $100 per ounce milestone in late January, many investors would be forgiven for expecting the metal to continue its remarkable surge upward largely unimpeded.—
Matt Richardson,
CBS News,
6 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Padilla and Gosling were a teacher and principal in another sketch reading passed notes out loud that, according to text on screen, were swapped out since rehearsal, causing both to crack up uncontrollably.—
Omar L. Gallaga,
Los Angeles Times,
8 Mar. 2026
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Here, Lauren Houser, vice president of marketing at cleaning solutions company Zep in Atlanta, Georgia, highlights six common hacks that really aren't all they're cracked up to be.—
Sarah Lyon,
Southern Living,
27 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
Among agonized grunts and huffs, Probst narrated the fumbles.—
Sarah Grant,
New Yorker,
2 Feb. 2026
-
David walks out of the kitchen and Moira huffs and takes his spot over the pot.—
Sabrina Weiss,
PEOPLE,
31 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
Others reported explosions around the Iranian city of Kermanshah in an area that is home to multiple missile bases.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
6 Mar. 2026
-
Amid the explosions, internet blackouts, and continued uncertainty, some Iranians are seeking a way out.—
Kara Fox,
CNN Money,
6 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Blowup.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/blowup. Accessed 12 Mar. 2026.
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