Comprehensive
Dictionary Suite
Help
Help
Help
 
       

ex·plode

explode

 
 
pronunciation:
ihk splod
features:
Word Combinations (verb), Word History, Word Explorer
part of speech: verb
inflections: explodes, exploding, exploded
definition 1: to suddenly put out energy with very great force, noise, and heat.
The bomb exploded.
similar words:
blow up
definition 2: to suddenly break open because of too much pressure inside.
If you blow too much air into a balloon, it will explode.
similar words:
burst
Word CombinationsSubscriber feature About this feature
derivation: exploder (n.)
Word History
Explode comes from a Latin word that means "to drive off the stage by clapping," the Roman version of booing. In English, "explode" first had the meaning "to drive away with a loud noise." During the 1700s it came to be used for something that goes off with a loud noise, such as a bomb.
Word Explorer
See
  space, volcano