to move quickly or suddenly with a loud humming or buzzing sound.
cars zooming by on the freeway.
to fly an airplane suddenly and sharply upward at great speed for a short distance, as in regaining altitude, clearing an obstacle, or signaling.
Movies, Television. to bring a subject, scene, etc., into closeup or cause it to recede into a long shot using a zoom lens and while maintaining focus.
Informal. to increase or rise suddenly and sharply.
Rents would zoom without rent control laws.
to cause (an airplane) to zoom.
to fly over (an obstacle) by zooming.
to make or cause to make a continuous buzzing or humming sound
to move or cause to move with such a sound
(intr) to move very rapidly; rush
we zoomed through town
to cause (an aircraft) to climb briefly at an unusually steep angle, or (of an aircraft) to climb in this way
(intr) (of prices) to rise rapidly
the sound or act of zooming
See zoom lens
First recorded in 1885–90; imitative
First recorded in 2010–15; shortening of Zoom Video Communications
Zoom zoom! This is a word for things moving quickly, either up or in a line. When you hear zoom, think fast. Zoom is a word that can be a sound effect, a noun, or a verb. In comic books, you might see a spaceship taking off with a word bubble saying ZOOM!. Fast cars can zoom; airplanes can zoom. You could say, "In one zoom, we were in the air!" Zooming can also mean to move while making a low humming noise that sounds like zoom. Like boom, zoom is a fun word: it's hard to say Zoom zoom! and be in a bad mood.
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Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Joined together these UK telescopes can zoom into objects in deep space and see them in incredible detail - with similar resolution to the Hubble space telescope.
From BBC ● Jul. 27, 2026
Colored-pencil illustrations evoke a faded softness, while comic-style panels zoom in, frame by frame, as different actions unfold.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 14, 2026
"These findings allow our community to zoom in on factors tied to longevity and, more importantly, they point to what maybe are key elements to extend the healthspan of all."
From Science Daily ● Jun. 21, 2026
So we’re still trying to figure out exactly how detailed we’re going to be able to zoom in, at the neighborhood level and the precinct level.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 1, 2026
Planets would seem to zoom backward as Earth overtook them; no epicycles were needed.
From "Zero: The Biography of a Dangerous Idea" by Charles Seife
Sir Ed said on X that he would attend the meeting by Zoom as he was with his family in France and had a disabled son who needed "24/7 care".
From BBC ● Jul. 29, 2026
Naomi recalled to The Times, over a Zoom call from Paris.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 28, 2026
When our Zoom began, she apologized for the noises outside — construction, dog walkers, gardeners.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 22, 2026
“I’m a recruiter and I set a candidate up with a hiring manager and she took the Zoom interview from her bed,” said another, apparently horrified, commenter.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 21, 2026
After she showed the video of me speaking at Gran’s church, then we would do the interview using Zoom.
From "Sir Fig Newton and the Science of Persistence" by Sonja Thomas
After some back and forth, McElwee relented, letting Adrian try his slow zooms and dynamic shots.
From Salon ● Jul. 24, 2026
The camera then zooms into Beddoes' face and he pushes it away.
From BBC ● Jul. 23, 2026
Over the next eight seconds, as the ball zooms from side to side, four different Knicks find their way into the lane.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 7, 2026
Although the disparity in performance looks less dramatic when one zooms out to a 25-year timespan.
From MarketWatch ● Nov. 19, 2025
A white car zooms around the corner and comes to a screeching stop right in front of the house.
From "American Street" by Ibi Zoboi
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.
