bolt

1 of 5

noun (1)

ˈbōlt 

1

a

: a lightning stroke

also : thunderbolt

b

: a shaft or missile designed to be shot from a crossbow or catapult

especially : a short stout usually blunt-headed arrow

2

a

: a wood or metal bar or rod used to fasten a door

b

: the part of a lock that is shot or withdrawn by the key

3

: a metal rod or pin for fastening objects together that usually has a head at one end and a screw thread at the other and is secured by a nut

4

: a roll of cloth or wallpaper of specified length

5

: a metal cylinder that drives the cartridge into the chamber of a firearm, locks the breech, and usually contains the firing pin and extractor

6

a

: a block of timber to be sawed or cut

b

: a short round section of a log

Illustration of bolt

• bolt 3

bolt

2 of 5

verb (1)

bolted; bolting; bolts

intransitive verb

1

: to move suddenly or nervously : start

2

: to move or proceed rapidly : dash

3

a

: to break away from control or a set course

b

: to dart off or away : flee

4

: to break away from or oppose one's previous affiliation (as with a political party or sports team)

5

: to produce seed prematurely

transitive verb

1

: to secure with a bolt

bolt the door

2

: to attach or fasten with bolts

3

: to eat hastily or without chewing

bolted his breakfast

4

: to break away from or refuse to support (something, such as a political party)

5

: to say impulsively : blurt

6

a

: flush, start

bolt rabbits

b

archaic : shoot, discharge

bolt

3 of 5

adverb

1

: in an erect or straight-backed position : rigidly

sat bolt upright

2

archaic : directly, straight

bolt

4 of 5

noun (2)

: the act or an instance of bolting

bolt

5 of 5

verb (2)

bolted; bolting; bolts

transitive verb

1

: to sift usually through fine-meshed cloth

bolt flour

2

archaic : sift sense 2

Synonyms

Verb (1)

• jump
• start
• startle

Examples of bolt in a Sentence

Verb (1)

I bolted as I read the winning lottery numbers

the cat bolted for the food dish the minute he spied it

the rabbit bolted when it saw the fox approaching

bolted out the cuss word without thinking

the way you bolted those hot dogs, it's no wonder you're feeling a little queasy

Adverb

She sat bolt upright, staring straight ahead.

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Outside, projected onto the facade, was a kaleidoscopic video that overlaid cartoonish eyes, lightning bolts and sacred geometry. —Renée Reizman, Los Angeles Times, 8 May 2024

On Saturday, May 4, Grace's grandmother Terri Irwin, 59, shared an adorable edited photo on Instagram showing the 3-year-old shooting lightning bolts out of her fingertips. —Becca Longmire, Peoplemag, 7 May 2024

But her matching wispy gown looked like someone draped a bolt of tulle over a fit model. —Merle Ginsberg, The Hollywood Reporter, 6 May 2024

If one school bolts, the other will follow — and so will North Carolina, the institution most coveted by the Big Ten and SEC. —Jon Wilner, The Mercury News, 3 May 2024

Some bolts on Orion also unexpectedly melted and eroded. —Will Sullivan, Smithsonian Magazine, 3 May 2024

Investigators looking into the Alaska flight say bolts that help keep the door plug in place were missing after repair work at a Boeing factory. —David Koenig, Fortune, 25 Apr. 2024

Michael Hiltzik: The UAW sends a lightning bolt into anti-union states with a huge victory at a VW plant. —Ryan Fonseca, Los Angeles Times, 23 Apr. 2024

The wildfire started when a bolt of lightning struck a dead cottonwood, sparking a blaze near a bald eagle nest that was home to a male and female pair, and their eaglet, according to the DeSoto and Boyer Chute National Wildlife Refuges. —Mitchell Willetts, Kansas City Star, 23 Apr. 2024

Verb

Then Utah bolted for the Pac-12, and the Cougars became an Independent in football and a member of the West Coast Conference in basketball. —Jon Wilner, The Mercury News, 9 May 2024

That metallic clang, the slap of him bolting from the chair, clenched my stomach, my chest. —Sarah Stankorb, Longreads, 9 May 2024

There’s Strom Thurmond and George Wallace, the white supremacist Southerners who bolted from the Democrats over their embrace of civil rights. —Nate Cohn, New York Times, 4 May 2024

The horror film accomplishes its genre intentions by playing as an uncomfortable, claustrophobic episode, firmly bolted to Owen’s sense of unbelonging. —J. Kim Murphy, Variety, 4 May 2024

In return, the shade cast by rising tomato plants can help provide some protective cover for the lettuce and stop it from bolting (flowering, which turns the leaves bitter and dry) during the heat of summer. 4. —Steve Bender, Southern Living, 2 May 2024

Five of the horses bolted, unseating four soldiers. —Rachel Treisman, NPR, 24 Apr. 2024

An orange no trespassing sign was bolted to a nearby tree. —Nick Bowlin, Harper's Magazine, 30 Mar. 2024

Body camera video of the incident played at the news conference shows Laing bolting through the yard and carrying a handgun. —Nathan Pilling, Kansas City Star, 12 Apr. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Noun (1)

Middle English, from Old English; akin to Old High German bolz crossbow bolt, and perhaps to Lithuanian beldėti to beat

Verb (2)

Middle English bulten, from Anglo-French buleter, of Germanic origin; akin to Middle High German biuteln to sift, from biutel bag, from Old High German būtil

First Known Use

Noun (1)

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1b

Verb (1)

13th century, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 1

Adverb

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun (2)

1577, in the meaning defined above

Verb (2)

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing bolt

• bolt-action
• bolt from the blue
• bolt-hole
• bolt out of the blue
• dead bolt
• make a bolt for
• make a bolt for it
• shoot one's bolt
• sit bolt upright
• spring bolt
• toggle bolt

Kids Definition

bolt

1 of 3 noun

ˈbōlt 

1

: a missile (as an arrow) for a crossbow or catapult

2

a

: a lightning stroke : thunderbolt

b

: a sudden surprise

a bolt from the blue

3

: a sliding bar used to fasten a door

4

: the part of a lock worked by a key

5

: a metal pin or rod usually with a head at one end and a screw thread at the other that is used to hold something in place

6

: a roll of cloth or wallpaper

7

: the device that closes the breech of a firearm

bolt

2 of 3 verb

1

: to move suddenly or nervously

2

: to move rapidly : dash

reporters bolted for the door

3

: run away sense 1

the horse shied and bolted

4

: to break away from or oppose one's political party

5

: to say thoughtlessly : blurt

6

: to fasten with a bolt

7

: to swallow hastily or without chewing

bolter noun

bolt

3 of 3 noun

: an act of bolting