blown-up
Americanadjective
-
(of a picture, photograph, image, etc.) enlarged.
-
damaged or destroyed by demolition, explosion, etc..
blown-up bridges.
-
(of a ball, balloon, etc.) inflated.
-
overexpanded; unduly large.
a blown-up sense of importance.
Etymology
Origin of blown-up
First recorded in 1860–65
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.
She decorated the space with blown-up photographs from New York Fashion Week, old family photos from Puerto Rico and a Barbie print.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 21, 2026
"Things can get spoken about and blown-up pretty heavily. I feel for them, in a way. It can be tricky."
From BBC ● Dec. 25, 2025
Tupac Shakur, dressed in a suit, stared somberly from a blown-up photo that was erected on an easel like at a memorial service.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 7, 2023
Gas now starts flowing from the pipe like air from a blown-up balloon.
From Seattle Times ● Jan. 2, 2023
There was a blown-up detail of the ghostly wings, just the wings—you couldn’t tell it was an ATA crest in particular.
From "Code Name Verity" by Elizabeth Wein
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.
