bomb

UK /bɒm/ US /bɑm/

noun 6verb 5adj 1phrase 1

Collocations

37

1

(noun.)

ADJ

big, huge, large, massive | small | cluster, fire, high explosive, incendiary, mortar, nail, petrol, smoke | atom/atomic, hydrogen, neutron, nuclear | bouncing, flying | terrorist | home-made | unexploded

stray

A stray bomb damaged several houses in the neighborhood during the war.

dummy, fake

The security team discovered a fake bomb in the airport terminal yesterday.

car | letter, parcel

time

The aging bridge is a structural time bomb that needs immediate repair.

VERB + BOMB

place, plant, put

The suspect was arrested after officers discovered he had placed bombs under the bridge.

carry

The military truck was designed to carry bombs safely to the airfield.

drop, release

During the air raid, fighter jets released bombs over the industrial area.

defuse | detonate, explode, set off

build, construct, develop (These verbs are only used about countries.)

Several countries have developed atomic bombs since the 1940s.

make

The criminals were arrested before they could make any bombs in their basement.

BOMB + VERB

fall, rain (down)

During the war, bombs fell on the neighborhood and destroyed many buildings.

hit sth | detonate, explode, go off

blow sb/sth to pieces, blow sth up, destroy sth, kill sb, rip through sth

The explosion destroyed the entire building when the device detonated at dawn.

be ticking away

BOMB + NOUN

attack, blast, explosion | alert, scare, threat, warning | hoax | disposal, squad | shelter

crater

The explosion left a massive bomb crater in the middle of the city street.

damage | site | victim | suspect

test

The government announced plans to conduct nuclear bomb tests in the remote desert region.

2

(verb.)

ADV

heavily

The neighborhood was heavily bombed during the war, destroying most of the buildings.

Definitions

noun

1

An explosive device used or intended as a weapon, especially, one dropped from an aircraft.

The size of the ground hole crater from the blast indicates it was a bomb.

2

An explosive device used or intended as a weapon, especially, one dropped from an aircraft.

During the Cold War, everyone worried about the bomb sometimes.

3

An explosive device used or intended as a weapon, especially, one dropped from an aircraft.

If Alberta’s reserves are a carbon bomb, this global expansion of tar sands and oil shale exploitation amounts to an escalating emissions arms race, the unlocking of a subterranean cache of weapons of mass ecological destruction.

"The hard Brexiteers have built a bomb under the UK automotive industry and the EU have lit it," they said.

4

An explosive device used or intended as a weapon, especially, one dropped from an aircraft.

And the rockets' red glare, the bombs bursting in air / Gave proof through the night that our flag was still there

5

An explosive device used or intended as a weapon, especially, one dropped from an aircraft.

verb

1

To attack using one or more bombs; to bombard.

2000, Canadian Peace Research Institute, Canadian Peace Research and Education Association, Peace Research, Volumes 32-33, page 65, 15 May: US jets bombed air-defence sites north of Mosul, as the Russian Foreign Ministry accused the US and Britain of intentionally bombing civilian targets. (AP)

Italy had bombed cities in the Ethiopian war; Italy and Germany had bombed civilians in the Spanish Civil War; at the start of World War II German planes dropped bombs on Rotterdam in Holland, Coventry in England, and elsewhere.

2

To attack using one or more bombs; to bombard.

School days have been missed or cut short many times to accommodate soccer travel through the years, but this return felt different. Photos posted on his social media documenting the experience were seen by classmates, many of whom bombed him with questions about his future in the sport.

3

To jump into water in a squatting position, with the arms wrapped around the legs, in order to maximise the resulting splash.

4

To add an excessive amount of chlorine to a pool when it has not been maintained properly.

5

To move at high speed.

I was bombing down the road on my motorbike.

adj

1

Great, awesome.

Have you tried the new tacos from that restaurant? They're pretty bomb!

Thesaurus

Synonyms

noun — an event that fails badly or is totally ineffectual

verb — throw bombs at or attack with bombs

bombard

verb — fail to get a passing grade

Antonyms

pass

Idioms & Phrases

drop a bomb

Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see drop, bomb.

bomb out

To fail; to produce no or very poor results; to drop out of or be eliminated from a competition.

The excitement along TV row this time of year generally is confined to the new season's shows—how many will hit or how many will bomb out?

drop the bomb

Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see drop, bomb.

Example Bank

6

01

The size of the ground hole crater from the blast indicates it was a bomb.

Wiktionary

02

During the Cold War, everyone worried about the bomb sometimes.

Wiktionary

03

If Alberta’s reserves are a carbon bomb, this global expansion of tar sands and oil shale exploitation amounts to an escalating emissions arms race, the unlocking of a subterranean cache of weapons of

Wiktionary

04

2000, Canadian Peace Research Institute, Canadian Peace Research and Education Association, Peace Research, Volumes 32-33, page 65, 15 May: US jets bombed air-defence sites north of Mosul, as the Russ

Wiktionary

05

Italy had bombed cities in the Ethiopian war; Italy and Germany had bombed civilians in the Spanish Civil War; at the start of World War II German planes dropped bombs on Rotterdam in Holland, Coventr

Wiktionary

06

Essendon was bombed in the early hours of 3 September 1916; a few houses and part of the church were destroyed, and two sisters killed.

Wiktionary

Usage Notes

i Register

In some senses, bomb is marked as dated, figuratively, archaic, informal, slang. Watch for register when choosing this word.

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