EXPLODES Synonyms: 44 Similar and Opposite Words

explodes

verb

present tense third-person singular of explode

as in detonates

to break open or into pieces usually because of internal pressure the building was wrecked when a powerful bomb exploded

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in shatters

to cause to break open or into pieces by or as if by an explosive the bomb was so powerful that it exploded windows in several neighboring buildings

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in erupts

to develop suddenly and violently the mayor's latest unpopular decision caused long-suppressed resentment to explode into open anger

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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 explodes The main weapon that the Ukrainians had used to inflict this damage was the suicide drone, which costs about $400 to make and explodes on impact. —

Simon Shuster, The Atlantic, 27 Mar. 2026 Characters will die and the entire lab sometimes explodes, only for things to snap back to normal in the very next episode. —

Eric Vilas-Boas, Vulture, 18 Mar. 2026 Autumn is when the park really explodes in color. —

Karthika Gupta, Travel + Leisure, 11 Mar. 2026 After a great deal of tense verbal sparring, the suspense explodes into violence and terror. —

Jordan Hoffman, Entertainment Weekly, 11 Mar. 2026 Directed by Roc Espinet, who’s adapted his own graphic novel of the same name to the screen, the film tells how Paula’s simple, innocent life in a medieval village explodes after a bloody attack by wolves. —

Kevin Giraud, Variety, 10 Mar. 2026 Tucked into the coastal bluffs just off of Highway 1, Calla Lily Valley is a small gulch that explodes with vibrancy this time of year as hundreds of shoulder-high white flowers bloom in unison. —

Gregory Thomas, San Francisco Chronicle, 2 Mar. 2026 Birmingham reunites with Dutton in Marshals and is injured in the first episode when a bomb explodes during a protest at the Broken Rock reservation. —

Peter White, Deadline, 1 Mar. 2026 An incoming projectile explodes over the water in the bay of Haifa off of the northern Israeli coastal city on February 28, 2026. —

Emma Graham, CNBC, 28 Feb. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for explodes

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
But once in a rare while, the frame detonates into history.

— Christopher Anderson, Vanity Fair, 27 Feb. 2026