explode
Americanverb (used without object)
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explodes,
present (3rd person singular)
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exploded,
past participle, past
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exploding
present participle
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to expand with force and noise because of rapid chemical change or decomposition, as gunpowder or nitroglycerine (opposed to implode).
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to burst, fly into pieces, or break up violently with a loud report, as a boiler from excessive pressure of steam.
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to burst forth violently or emotionally, especially with noise, laughter, violent speech, etc..
He exploded with rage when contradicted.
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Phonetics. (of plosives) to terminate the occlusive phase with a plosion.
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Golf. to play an explosion shot on a golf ball.
verb (used with object)
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explodes,
present (3rd person singular)
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exploded,
past participle, past
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exploding
present participle
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to cause (gunpowder, a boiler, etc.) to explode.
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to cause to be rejected; destroy the repute of; discredit or disprove.
to explode a theory.
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Phonetics. to end with plosion.
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Golf. to play an explosion shot on (a golf ball).
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Obsolete. to drive (a player, play, etc.) from the stage by loud expressions of disapprobation.
verb
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to burst or cause to burst with great violence as a result of internal pressure, esp through the detonation of an explosive; blow up
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to destroy or be destroyed in this manner
to explode a bridge
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(of a gas) to undergo or cause (a gas) to undergo a sudden violent expansion, accompanied by heat, light, a shock wave, and a loud noise, as a result of a fast uncontrolled exothermic chemical or nuclear reaction
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(intr) to react suddenly or violently with emotion, etc
to explode with anger
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(intr) (esp of a population) to increase rapidly
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(tr) to show (a theory, etc) to be baseless; refute and make obsolete
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(tr) phonetics to pronounce (a stop) with audible plosion
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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explodesimple
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explodessimple
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have explodedperfect
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has explodedperfect
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am explodingprogressive
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are explodingprogressive
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is explodingprogressive
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have been explodingperfect progressive
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has been explodingperfect progressive
Past
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explodedsimple
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had explodedperfect
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was explodingprogressive
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were explodingprogressive
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had been explodingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of explode
First recorded in 1530–40; from Latin explōdere “to drive off by clapping, drive away,” from ex- ex- 1 + -plōdere, variant stem of plaudere “to clap” ( cf. applaud)
Explanation
Anything and anyone can explode — that is, produce a violent, sudden and usually very loud release of energy. Explode's two most common meanings refer to a physically destructive act, most commonly a bomb going off, or metaphorically, as in your parents' sudden fury when they see your end-of-year grades. Originally explode meant something quite different — to drive an unpleasing actor or group of performers from the stage by clapping and booing. (From the Latin words ex, meaning "out," and plaudere, "to clap one's hands.") Those ancient Greek and Roman crowds were tough.
Vocabulary lists containing explode
Brown Girl Dreaming
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"Raymond's Run"
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"Analysis of Baseball" and "Singing and Stretching"
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
The news comes at a time when the buzzword “longevity” has become synonymous with wellness, and as the U.S. centenarian population is expected to explode over the next few decades.
From Salon ● Aug. 11, 2026
"The studio was often church-like and I would sit in silence, waiting for your ideas to explode out of your keyboard or your guitar and then I would run with them," she wrote.
From BBC ● Aug. 8, 2026
The arachnid hormones in his body are surging, causing his pupils to turn black and his temper to explode.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 30, 2026
Astronomers have long suspected that white dwarfs also receive kicks, but the process is much gentler because these stars do not explode.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 21, 2026
I swallow hard, as if all the noises I heard today are going to explode out of me.
From "Muffled" by Jennifer Gennari
When a massive star explodes as a supernova, for example, the blast can launch the stellar remnant in one direction at high speed.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 21, 2026
“You don’t want an air bag that explodes, and you don’t want an air bag that under-inflates,” he says.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 10, 2026
But traipse past the principal’s office, scale a short incline, and you’ll be rewarded with an 80-foot-long mural that explodes with color.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 27, 2026
Both companies are major manufacturers of semiconductors and computer hardware, and earnings for those companies have skyrocketed as demand for memory chips explodes.
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 1, 2026
The sheriff turns and opens his mouth, but before he has time to utter a word Marlena explodes again, shrieking like a banshee, poking a finger in his face.
From "Water for Elephants" by Sara Gruen
As home prices exploded over the last few years, so have home values — and, in turn, property-tax bills.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 15, 2026
"It has exploded and we can't keep up with the demand," Smith told BBC North West Tonight.
From BBC ● Aug. 12, 2026
The budget crisis exploded into public attention in an early July letter to L.A.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 11, 2026
Their images have exploded in Chinese pop culture, appearing in videogames, animated films and collectible bobbleheads.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 8, 2026
They jostled and shoved, spun, crowded, and exploded.
From "Nim’s Island" by Wendy Orr
Telecom companies assumed internet traffic would continue exploding, so they raced to build nationwide and transoceanic fiber networks before the customers and revenue were there.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 10, 2026
Stanford researchers have identified a previously unknown immune cell that destroys nearby cells by exploding.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 5, 2026
Blasts, initially thought to be exploding gas cylinders, may have been World War Two explosives detonated by the heat of the fires, the local fire commander told local media.
From BBC ● Aug. 4, 2026
During the fire, blasts were heard, initially mistaken for exploding gas cylinders, but they may have been these shells, according to fire commander Thomas Mimiague.
From Barron's ● Aug. 3, 2026
Ten...nine...eight...I remembered my Short-Circuit Scientist moment with Thomas and the exploding grapes.
From "Sir Fig Newton and the Science of Persistence" by Sonja Thomas
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
