What does "bomb" mean?
An explosive device used or intended as a weapon, especially, one dropped from an aircraft.
Bomb
/bɑm/ adj, noun, phrase, verb, slang
adj, noun, phrase, verb, slang ·Very common ·Middle school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: An explosive device used or intended as a weapon, especially, one dropped from an aircraft.
- Grammar: bomb is listed as adj, noun, phrase, verb, slang.
- Nearest alternatives: dud, a-bomb, aerial bomb, antimasque.
- Useful contrasts: boffo, ace, aces.
- Usage evidence: A time bomb went off in the airport killing thirteen people.
How to use "bomb"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "bomb" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "bomb" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "bomb" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "bomb" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "bomb" is acting as adj, noun, phrase, verb, slang in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "dud" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "bomb", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
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 The atomic bomb; the capacity to launch a nuclear attack. informal
"Pakistan and India both have the Bomb now."
- 3 an explosive device fused to explode under specific conditions wordnet
- 4 An explosive device used or intended as a weapon, especially, one dropped from an aircraft.; The atomic bomb. dated, often
"During the Cold War, everyone worried about the bomb sometimes."
- 5 strong sealed vessel for measuring heat of combustion wordnet
Show 26 more definitions
- 6 An explosive device used or intended as a weapon, especially, one dropped from an aircraft.; Events or conditions that have a speedy destructive effect. figuratively
"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."
- 7 an event that fails badly or is totally ineffectual wordnet
- 8 An explosive device used or intended as a weapon, especially, one dropped from an aircraft.; A grenade, mortar shell, or artillery shell. archaic, historical
"And the rockets' red glare, the bombs bursting in air / Gave proof through the night that our flag was still there"
- 9 An explosive device used or intended as a weapon, especially, one dropped from an aircraft.; Ellipsis of bomb ship. abbreviation, alt-of, archaic, ellipsis, historical
- 10 Any explosive charge. colloquial
"The mineworkers are setting their bombs."
- 11 A bag or balloon containing a substance such as water, flour, or paint, designed to burst and splatter. in-compounds
"The children are playing with water bombs in the garden."
- 12 Anything that is at risk of exploding (literally) or that has exploded. colloquial, figuratively
"That turkey fryer is a bomb waiting to go off."
- 13 A fart. India, South, colloquial
"He just dropped a bomb."
- 14 A failure; an unpopular commercial product. slang
"box-office bomb"
- 15 A car in poor condition. Australia, US, informal
"Nowadays, an old bomb simply won’t pass the inspection."
- 16 A large amount of money. Australia, UK, slang
"make a bomb"
- 17 Something highly effective or attractive.; A success; the bomb. British, slang
"Our fabulous new crumpets have been selling like a bomb."
- 18 Something highly effective or attractive.; A very attractive woman. British, India, slang
- 19 Something highly effective or attractive.; An action or statement that causes a strong reaction. in-compounds, often
"It was an ordinary speech, until the president dropped a bomb: he would be retiring for medical reasons."
- 20 Something highly effective or attractive.; An action or statement that causes a strong reaction.; An obscene word identified by its first letter. in-compounds, often
"Normally very controlled, he dropped the F-bomb and cursed the paparazzi."
- 21 Something highly effective or attractive.; A long forward pass. slang
- 22 Something highly effective or attractive.; A high kick that sends the ball relatively straight up so players can get under it before it comes down. slang
- 23 Something highly effective or attractive.; A throw into the basket from a considerable distance. slang
"With five seconds remaining, Smith received the inbounds pass and launched a bomb that dropped through the net to give his team an 80-79 victory."
- 24 Something highly effective or attractive.; A highly potent joint (cannabis cigarette). slang
"Give me two bucks, you take a puff and pass my bomb back / Suck up that dank like a Slurpee, the serious / Bomb will make a niggy go delirious like Eddie Murphy"
- 25 A cyclone whose central pressure drops at an average rate of at least one millibar per hour for at least 24 hours.
"A bomb for this study is defined as one in which the deepening rate is the geostrophic equivalent of at least 12 mb in 12 h at 45ºN."
- 26 A heavy-walled container designed to permit chemical reactions under high pressure.
"The process consisted in preparing the metal by metallothermic reduction of titanium tetrachloride with sodium metal in a steel bomb."
- 27 A great booming noise; a hollow sound. obsolete
"a Pillar of Iron […] Which if you had ſtrucke […] it would make a great Bombe in the Chamber beneath."
- 28 A woman’s breast. slang
- 29 A professional wrestling throw in which an opponent is lifted and then slammed back-first down to the mat.
- 30 A recreational drug ground up, wrapped, and swallowed. slang
- 31 An act of jumping into water while keeping one's arms and legs tucked into the body, as in a squatting position, to maximize splashing. colloquial
"In clear contravention of the International Code of Conduct for Swimming Baths, a teenager had entered the pool by performing a bomb."
Verb
- 1 To attack using one or more bombs; to bombard. intransitive, transitive
"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)"
- 2 throw bombs at or attack with bombs wordnet
- 3 To attack using one or more bombs; to bombard.; To attack or annoy in the manner of a bombing. figuratively, intransitive, often, transitive
"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."
- 4 fail to get a passing grade wordnet
- 5 To jump into water in a squatting position, with the arms wrapped around the legs, in order to maximise the resulting splash. informal
Show 9 more definitions
- 6 To add an excessive amount of chlorine to a pool when it has not been maintained properly. informal
- 7 To move at high speed. especially, informal
"I was bombing down the road on my motorbike."
- 8 To make oneself drunk. reflexive, slang
"The calendar was selling Moctezuma beer, so I had one of them in her honor while Murray bombed himself with the mezcal."
- 9 To cover an area in many graffiti tags. slang
"It is often used to collect other writer's tags, and future plans for bombing and piecing."
- 10 To fail dismally. ambitransitive, slang
"I totally bombed that exam."
- 11 To crash. intransitive, slang
"When things weren't going Alison's way at work — some editor wanted something changed or her computer bombed again — she'd cuss and yell at whoever happened to be in the way."
- 12 To make a smelly mess in (a toilet). slang, transitive
- 13 To sound; to boom; to make a humming or buzzing sound. obsolete
"What over-charged piece of melancholie / Is this, breakes in betweene my wishes thus, / With bombing sighs?"
- 14 Synonym of parachute (“wrap illicit drugs in a covering before swallowing them”). slang
Adjective
- 1 Great, awesome. slang
"Have you tried the new tacos from that restaurant? They're pretty bomb!"
Phrase
- 1 Initialism of bottom of the motherfucking barrel (indicating that something or someone is egregiously unfavorable). abbreviation, alt-of, derogatory, initialism, offensive, slang, vulgar
Synonyms
All synonymsAntonyms
Example
"A time bomb went off in the airport killing thirteen people."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "bomb"?
Common synonyms include: dud, a-bomb, aerial bomb, antimasque, antipersonnel bomb, astonishment.
How do you use "bomb" in a sentence?
A time bomb went off in the airport killing thirteen people.
How do you pronounce "bomb"?
Pronounced /bɑm/.
Etymology
From French bombe, from Italian bomba, from Latin bombus (“a booming sound”), from Ancient Greek βόμβος (bómbos, “booming, humming, buzzing”), imitative of the sound itself. Doublet of bombe. Compare boom.