balloon
noun
a bag made of thin rubber or other light material, usually brightly colored, inflated with air or with some lighter-than-air gas and used as a children's plaything or as a decoration.
had ballooned
-
past perfectof balloon.past perfect
Used to express a completed action that took place before another specific past action occurred.
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.
When Muir sent out his update, that spread had ballooned to around 183 basis points and the trend was also picked up by JPMorgan’s derivative strategy team, led by Bram Kaplan.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 2, 2026
In 2025 the number had ballooned to 410, with 6,223 merchant seamen falling victim.
From BBC ● Feb. 8, 2026
By 2025 this had ballooned to 156 orders affecting nearly 700 products, according to a government press release.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 14, 2026
A little more than two hours later, the fire had ballooned in size and was visible from space.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 8, 2025
Mazen punctures my elation as quickly as it had ballooned.
From "An Ember in the Ashes" by Sabaa Tahir
