Definitions
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.
- intransitive verb To release mechanical, chemical, or nuclear energy by the sudden production of gases in a confined space.
- intransitive verb To burst violently as a result of internal pressure.
- intransitive verb To shatter with a loud noise.
- intransitive verb To make an emotional outburst.
- intransitive verb To increase suddenly, sharply, and without control.
- intransitive verb To change state or appearance suddenly.
- intransitive verb Sports To hit a golf ball out of a sand trap with a shot that scatters the sand.
- intransitive verb To cause to release energy or burst violently and noisily.
- intransitive verb To show to be false or unreliable.
- intransitive verb Sports To hit (a golf ball) out of a sand trap with an explosive shot.
from The Century Dictionary.
- To decry or reject with noise; express disapprobation of with noise or marks of contempt; hiss or hoot off: as, to
explode a play or an actor. - To destroy the repute or demonstrate the fallacy of; disprove or bring into discredit or contempt; do away with: as, an exploded custom; an exploded hypothesis.
- To cause to burst suddenly and noisily into an expanded or gaseous state, or into fragments, as gunpowder or the like, a steam-boiler, etc. See II.
- To drive out with sudden violence and noise.
- In physiology, to cause to break out or burst forth; bring into sudden action or manifestation; develop rapidly and violently.
- To burst with force and noise, as gunpowder or an elastic fluid, through suddenly developed chemical reaction, as from the application of fire or friction.
- To be broken up suddenly with a loud report by an internal force; fly into pieces with violence and noise from any cause, as a boiler from excessive pressure of steam, a bombshell from the expansion of its charge by heat, or a wheel from too rapid revolution.
- To burst noisily into sudden activity; break out with loud noise from some internal force, or into violent outcry or speech, as from emotion: as, a geyser which explodes at regular intervals; to explode with rage or with laughter.
- In physiology, to break out or burst forth; become suddenly manifest in operation or effect.
from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.
- intransitive verb To become suddenly expanded into a great volume of gas or vapor; to burst violently into flame.
- intransitive verb To burst with force and a loud report; to detonate, as a shell filled with powder or the like material, or as a boiler from too great pressure of steam.
- intransitive verb To burst forth with sudden violence and noise.
- transitive verb obsolete To drive from the stage by noisy expressions of disapprobation; to hoot off; to drive away or reject noisily.
- transitive verb To bring into disrepute, and reject; to drive from notice and acceptance.
- transitive verb To cause to explode or burst noisily; to detonate.
- transitive verb To drive out with violence and noise, as by powder.
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- verb transitive To
create anexplosion , usually resulting in thedestruction of an intendedtarget . - verb transitive To
destroy violently orabruptly . - verb transitive To create an
exploded view . - verb transitive, archaic To
disprove ordebunk . - verb intransitive To
blast , toblow up , to burst, todetonate , togo off . - verb figuratively, intransitive To make a
violent oremotional outburst .
from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.
- verb drive from the stage by noisy disapproval
- verb show a violent emotional reaction
- verb cause to burst with a violent release of energy
- verb increase rapidly and in an uncontrolled manner
- verb destroy by exploding
- verb cause to burst as a result of air pressure; of stop consonants like /p/, /t/, and /k/
- verb burst and release energy as through a violent chemical or physical reaction
- verb burst outward, usually with noise
- verb be unleashed; emerge with violence or noise
- verb show (a theory or claim) to be baseless, or refute and make obsolete
Etymologies
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License
Support
Help support Wordnik (and make this page ad-free) by adopting the word explode.
Examples
-
Try not to let your brain explode at the mass of slush incoming today.
Clarkesworld slush comes in many flavors pabba 2010
-
Did the beautiful new Mac explode from the psychic force of Le R's displeasure, or from overheating of the Shift key as Le R expressed said displeasure?
-
A car full of white people whose collective bladders are about to explode is a car full of tension!
Think Progress » Virginians Buck Far-Right Policies Of McDonnell And Cuccinelli 2010
-
Then the Japanese soldiers would jump on them until they would explode from the water pressure.
-
Do not use screw-topped bottles or Mason jars, which could explode from the trapped gases.
-
That's because you need conflict to make a story, and setting a bomb to explode is easier than thinking of an ingenious way for your hero to diffuse it.
MIND MELD: Why is Genre Fiction Bleak and What Can Be Done About It? 2009
-
I vote for hotel because, yes, you can go crazy and though I ` ve never actually SEEN a brain explode, I ` m pretty sure they can.
-
After reading the comments on the Elizabeth Taylor story I have come to a conclusion: The people, or at least a good portion of them who back Obama are bitter, mean spirited, unkind, self centered people who need to chillllllllllllllllllllllllll out or they will explode from the anger!!!!
-
Why doesn't anyone explain to the Republicans that letting the deficit explode is exactly the same thing as raising taxes.
-
Strange emotions welled up inside her until she felt like she was going to explode from the pressure
Comments
Log in or sign up to get involved in the conversation. It's quick and easy.