blowup 1 of 2

blow up

2 of 2

verb

1
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

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 blowup
Noun
The pick is a marked turn from outgoing SEC Chair Gary Gensler, who cracked down on digital assets following a 2022 market rout that unveiled fraudulent practices and resulted in expensive blowups, including the sudden collapse of crypto exchange FTX, followed by crypto lenders Genesis and Celsius. Kate Gibson, CBS News, 5 Dec. 2024 This trenching, which began after the blowups, is evident in Planet Labs images analyzed by 38North, with piles of dirt and heavy machinery marking unfinished work. Gordon G. Chang, Newsweek, 31 Oct. 2024
Verb
Hello, and welcome to Group Chat, where culture reporters Rebecca Jennings and Alex Abad-Santos discuss the topics currently blowing up our (and probably your) phones. Alex Abad-Santos, Vox, 31 Jan. 2025 Despite all the positive moves for the Blue Jays, Bleacher Report's Kerry Miller expects the Andrés Giménez trade to blow up in their faces. Barbara A. Perry, Newsweek, 28 Jan. 2025 See all Example Sentences for blowup 
Recent Examples of Synonyms for blowup
Noun
  • One of the newest attractions extending from Bangkok to the Khao Yai region is Art Forest, a public project intended to propel Thailand’s contemporary art scene into the center of the Southeast Asia spotlight.
    Lane Nieset, Vogue, 17 Feb. 2025
  • Additional scenes were shot in the hotel’s restaurants, pool, gym, boxing ring, spirit house, beach and common areas, as well as those luxurious water hammocks.
    Jordan Riefe, The Hollywood Reporter, 17 Feb. 2025
Noun
  • Iceland is a volcanic island, and volcanic islands sometimes have volcanic eruptions.
    Stacey Leasca, Travel + Leisure, 7 Feb. 2025
  • Santorini took its current shape following one of the largest volcanic eruptions in history, around 1600 BC.
    Reuters, NBC News, 6 Feb. 2025
Verb
  • The former Republican majority leader has angered some of Trump's supporters for votes and views that conflict with the president's.
    Swapna Venugopal Ramaswamy, USA TODAY, 14 Feb. 2025
  • Further confusing and angering fans has been the way the team has seemingly taken shots at Dončić's work ethic and conditioning.
    Rohan Nadkarni, NBC News, 13 Feb. 2025
Verb
  • Egypt is a regional lynchpin containing a potential powder keg of radical sentiment that if detonated would ricochet around the region, puncturing European and US interests.
    Nic Robertson, CNN, 5 Feb. 2025
  • Just a few days before a career Special Forces soldier detonated a rental truck outside a Trump hotel in Las Vegas, the U.S. Department of Defense released a report on the mental health of its troops.
    Anna Mulrine Grobe, The Christian Science Monitor, 28 Jan. 2025
Verb
  • These carnivorous crustaceans pack a powerful punch that can smash mollusk shells at speeds of up to 50 miles per hour and even break glass.
    Laura Baisas, Popular Science, 7 Feb. 2025
  • France’s Ad Vitam has entered Netflix’s all-time top ten for most popular non-English movies on its platform one week after Culpa Tuya smashed records for Amazon.
    Max Goldbart, Deadline, 7 Feb. 2025
Verb
  • The story of Dieter that so cracks up Helena could also be interpreted as something about the pointlessness of trying to coexist with nature, when man is meant to conquer it.
    Alan Sepinwall, Rolling Stone, 7 Feb. 2025
  • My only expectations were to eat (more than) my share of Adam Aron’s popcorn and to watch my older daughter crack up seeing her favorite graphic novel come to life.
    Tony Maglio, IndieWire, 3 Feb. 2025
Noun
  • Volunteers were charged around 25 cents per huff, bringing in good profit for those who’d invested in the necessary gas tanks, tubes, and breathing bags.
    Oshan Jarow, Vox, 7 Dec. 2018
  • The huffs and hums, produced by two women standing face-to-face and vocalizing from their throats, is believed to be one of the oldest music forms in the world.
    Lale Arikoglu, Condé Nast Traveler, 17 Aug. 2024
Noun
  • The explosion caused damage from the ninth floor upwards, the fire department said in a statement obtained by the outlet, and two of the fatality victims and an five or the injured were tourists from Macau.
    Natalie Neysa Alund, USA TODAY, 14 Feb. 2025
  • The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), the UN’s nuclear watchdog, said that its team at the site heard a large explosion shortly before 2 a.m. local time Friday (7 p.m. ET Thursday).
    Daria Tarasova-Markina, CNN, 14 Feb. 2025

Thesaurus Entries Near blowup

Cite this Entry

“Blowup.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/blowup. Accessed 22 Feb. 2025.

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