1
as in intense
extreme in degree, power, or effect
there's been an explosive interest in the sport since the Olympics
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in violent
marked by bursts of destructive force or intense activity
one of the most explosive storms to hit that area of the coast in some time
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of explosive
Luisa Beltran, Sportico.com, 19 Feb. 2026
Top skimo athletes have both high VO₂ max and explosive upper- and lower-body strength relative to their body weight.
—Matt Fuchs, Scientific American, 18 Feb. 2026
Antwan Staley, New York Daily News, 2 Jan. 2026
An art conservator who'd prefer to be immersed in detail work, Sarah is bombing as the host of a dinner party where her entrepreneur husband (Tom Riley) hopes to impress an obnoxious prospective investor (Tom Goodman-Hill) when a literal explosive goes off in her neighborhood.
—Judy Berman, Time, 29 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for explosive
Adjective
The event focused on the explosive growth experienced by women’s sports.
—Luisa Beltran, Sportico.com, 19 Feb. 2026
Top skimo athletes have both high VO₂ max and explosive upper- and lower-body strength relative to their body weight.
—Matt Fuchs, Scientific American, 18 Feb. 2026
Noun
Much like his father, the younger Trotter is known for his explosive downhill tackling and power.
—Antwan Staley, New York Daily News, 2 Jan. 2026
An art conservator who'd prefer to be immersed in detail work, Sarah is bombing as the host of a dinner party where her entrepreneur husband (Tom Riley) hopes to impress an obnoxious prospective investor (Tom Goodman-Hill) when a literal explosive goes off in her neighborhood.
—Judy Berman, Time, 29 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for explosive
Recent Examples of Synonyms for explosive
Adjective
-
The employee, a mother of two teen girls, warned about the filters and said the pressure on teen girls is intense.—
Clare Duffy,
CNN Money,
19 Feb. 2026
-
During periods of intense rainfall, the risk of flooding increases, particularly in low-lying and flood-prone areas.—
Southern California Weather Report,
Daily News,
18 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
Again, legal observers and ordinary citizens captured his violent death from several angles.—
Nick Woltman,
Twin Cities,
22 Feb. 2026
-
As the hours passed, violent events were replicated in Colima, Nayarit, Aguascalientes and Guanajuato, where blockades and attacks on infrastructure are multiplying.—
Claudia Núñez,
AZCentral.com,
22 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
During her first bombing, Ginny had run for shelter into a perfume shop, where the proprietress methodically moved each bottle from the streetfront vitrine into a neat line on the floor as the dust from the percussive bombs blotted out the sun.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
24 Feb. 2026
-
Maybe there will be a rocket or a bomb and that waiting is stressful.—
Sophia Panych,
Allure,
24 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
These calculations are computationally intensive and only recently became feasible.—
Neetika Walter,
Interesting Engineering,
21 Feb. 2026
-
Modernizing manufacturing and automating industry will be energy-intensive.—
Stuart Loren,
Chicago Tribune,
20 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
This time, the soloist was the stellar emerging pianist Yunchan Lim, who keeps to himself, either lost in dreamy reverie or, like a jumpy teenager, in ferocious attack mode.—
Classical Music Critic,
Los Angeles Times,
19 Feb. 2026
-
Fullerton's ferocious winds toppled trees onto homes, cars and trucks, jolting neighbors awake early Wednesday morning.—
Michele Gile,
CBS News,
19 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
Potential payloads include lightweight anti-submarine torpedoes, electronic warfare equipment, acoustic decoys designed to mimic other vessels, and deployable sensor packages for intelligence collection.—
Sujita Sinha,
Interesting Engineering,
10 Feb. 2026
-
But Kaibab is a torpedo, launching from the South Rim and chasing a ridge down and out across the canyon.—
Roger Naylor,
AZCentral.com,
29 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
Born in 1941 to an unwed teenage mother in Greenville, South Carolina, Jackson turned heads early with his fierce drive and athletic ability.—
Mark Whitaker,
CBS News,
22 Feb. 2026
-
Göransson saw off fierce competition, including Alexandre Desplat, a 13-time nominee and three-time winner of the category; the latter was nominated for his score for Guillermo Del Toro’s Frankenstein.—
Thomas Smith,
Billboard,
22 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
Some still vividly recall the heavy, thick pall of smoke that drifted through the entire region, fed by furious wildfires to the east and north.—
Orlando Sentinel Editorial Board,
The Orlando Sentinel,
22 Feb. 2026
-
Both of these rabbis were already furious about the formation of the American Council for Judaism, an anti-Zionist organization that a group of German Jews, including Julian, had founded in 1942.—
Nicholas Lemann,
New Yorker,
21 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Explosive.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/explosive. Accessed 26 Feb. 2026.
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