blow
blow
I
/ˈbloʊ/ verb , blew /ˈbluː/, blown /ˈbloʊn/, blow·ing
1 a [ no obj ] of air, wind, etc. : to move with speed or force
The wind was blowing earlier but it's not blowing now. [=there was wind earlier but there isn't any wind now]
The wind is blowing hard. = It's blowing hard outside.
The storm is blowing hard/fiercely. = It's blowing up a storm.
A cool breeze blew through the open window.
The wind was blowing from the north.
1 b [ + obj ] : to cause (air or something carried by air) to move
The fan blew the air.
The fan blew the smoke out the window.
1 c : to be moved or affected in a specified way by the wind
[ no obj ] The door blew open/shut in the wind.
The papers blew all over the place!
The sign blew down/over.
The leaves were blowing around in the wind.
His hat blew off/away in the wind.
[ + obj ] The breeze blew my wet hair dry.
The wind blew the door open/shut.
The wind blew the sign down/over.
The wind blew the ship off course.
A gust of wind blew the papers all over the room.
The wind blew his hat off/away.
2 a : to create a current of moving air by breathing
[ no obj ] She blew on her fingers to warm them.
He was blowing on his soup to cool it off.
[ + obj ] She blew air into the balloon.
2 b [ + obj ] : to produce or shape (something, such as a bubble) by blowing air
The clown was blowing bubbles for the children.
blow beautiful shapes out of glass = blow glass into beautiful shapes
— see also glassblowing
3 a [ no obj ] of a musical instrument, whistle, etc. : to produce a loud sound
The trumpet/whistle blew loudly.
The siren blew. [=sounded]
3 b [ + obj ] : to play or produce a sound with (a musical instrument, whistle, etc.)
blow a trumpet
blow a whistle
blow a siren
4 : to damage or destroy (something) with an explosion
[ + obj ] The terrorists rigged a bomb to blow [=(more commonly) blow up] the bridge.
The explosion blew his leg off. = The explosion blew off his leg.
The explosion blew out the window.
The burglar blew the safe open with dynamite.
The bomb blew the bridge to bits/smithereens. [=the bomb completely destroyed the bridge]
[ no obj ] They ran away when they realized that the bridge was about to blow. [=(more commonly) blow up, explode]
The window blew out in the explosion.
The safe blew open when the burglar dynamited it.
— sometimes used figuratively
The election has been blown wide open by the revelation that one of the candidates was lying.
The prosecution's case was blown apart by new evidence.
see also
5 : to cause (a tire) to suddenly lose air and become flat
[ + obj ] He drove over a nail and blew a tire.
— often + out
The car blew out a tire.
[ no obj ] The car crashed because one of its tires had blown.
— often + out
One of the car's tires blew out.
see also blowout 1
6 of an electric fuse : to melt and stop the flow of electricity when an electric current is too strong
[ no obj ] The light went off because a fuse had blown.
[ + obj ] What blew the fuse? — see also blow a fuse at fuse, 1
7 [ + obj ] : to clear (your nose) by forcing air through it quickly
He blew his nose into his handkerchief.
8 [ + obj ] informal : to spend or waste (a large amount of money) in a foolish way
He blew his whole paycheck on a horse that finished last.
9 [ + obj ] informal
9 a : to make a mistake in doing or handling (something)
The actress blew her lines. [=she said her lines incorrectly]
9 b : to lose or miss (an opportunity) by acting in a stupid or clumsy way
He blew an opportunity to make a lot of money in the stock market.
I blew my chance for a big promotion.
They should have won the game but they blew it.
“I have a job interview tomorrow.” “Well, don't blow it.”
I was late for the job interview and that blew it for me. [=that caused me not to get the job]
10 [ + obj ] US, informal : to leave (a place) very quickly
Let's blow this joint.
He packed his bags and blew town [=left town] without even saying goodbye.
11 always followed by an adverb or preposition [ + obj ] US, informal : to throw (a ball) with great force and speed
The pitcher blew a fastball by/past the batter.
12 Brit, informal
— used to express surprise, annoyance, etc.
He washed the dishes? Well blow me down!
Blow it! I forgot to buy milk.
blow a gasket — see gasket
blow away [ phrasal verb ]
blow (someone) away or blow away (someone) informal
1 : to kill (someone) by shooting
a gangster who got blown away by a hit man
2 : to impress (someone) in a very strong and favorable way
I was really blown away by her latest movie.
3 US : to defeat (someone) very badly
They blew their rivals away in the first game 34‒7.
blow hot and cold
: to change repeatedly from liking or favoring something to not liking or favoring it
Local residents have been blowing hot and cold on the question of whether to build a new school.
blow in [ phrasal verb ]
informal : to arrive in a sudden or unexpected way
He just blew in, asking for a place to stay.
blow into [ phrasal verb ]
blow into (a place) informal : to arrive at (a place) in a sudden or unexpected way
He just blew into town and needs a place to stay.
blown out of proportion — see proportion
blow off [ phrasal verb ]
US informal
1 blow (someone) off or blow off (someone)
1 a : to refuse to notice or deal with (someone) : to ignore (someone)
I tried to say hello to him, but he just blew me off.
1 b : to fail to meet (someone) at an expected time
He was supposed to meet me for lunch but he blew me off.
2 blow (something) off or blow off (something) : to fail to attend or show up for (something)
He blew off an official dinner.
blow off (some) steam — see steam, 1
blow out [ phrasal verb ]
1 blow out or blow (something) out or blow out (something) : to go out or to cause (something, such as a candle) to go out by blowing
There was a sudden gust of wind and the candles blew out.
She blew out the candles on her birthday cake.
The wind blew out the candle.
2 of a storm : to come to an end : stop
The storm eventually blew out. [=blew over] = The storm eventually blew itself out. [=the storm eventually ended]
— see also blowout
blow over [ phrasal verb ]
of a storm : to come to an end : stop
The storm eventually blew over. [=blew itself out, ended]
— often used figuratively
The scandal blew over and was forgotten in a few months.
blow smoke — see smoke, 1
blow (someone) a kiss — see kiss, 2
blow someone's brains out — see brain, 1
blow someone's cover — see cover, 2
blow someone's mind — see mind, 1
blow the gaff — see gaff
blow the whistle — see whistle, 1
blow up [ phrasal verb ]
1 blow (something) up or blow up (something) : to fill (something) with air or gas : inflate
blow up a balloon
blow up a tire
2 blow up or blow (something) up or blow up (something)
2 a : to explode or to cause (something, such as a bomb) to explode
The bomb blew up.
blow up a bomb
2 b : to be destroyed or to destroy (something) by an explosion
The bridge blew up (in the explosion).
The soldiers blew up the bridge with a bomb.
— sometimes used figuratively
The whole situation has blown up in his face [=has gone terribly wrong] and he may well be fired!
3 : to become very angry
The boss blew up when the shipment arrived late.
4 blow (something) up or blow up (something) : to make (a photograph) larger
We had the photograph blown up for framing.
: to make (something) seem larger or more important than it really is : exaggerate
It was just a trivial mistake that got blown up into something much worse. [=got greatly exaggerated]
5 of the wind, a storm, etc. : to begin blowing
A wind blew up but quickly subsided.
A storm blew up suddenly.
— see also blowup
blow your cool — see cool, 3
blow your own horn — see horn, 1
blow your own trumpet — see trumpet, 1
blow your top (
informal : to become very angry
Mom really blew her top when she found out I'd wrecked the car.
————————
II
noun , pl blows [ count ]
1 : a strong wind
If the weather reports are right, we're in for a good blow tonight. [=there will be a strong wind tonight; the wind will blow hard tonight]
2 : the act of blowing something (such as your nose)
He gave his nose a good blow. [=he blew his nose]
— compare blow, 3
————————
III
noun , pl blows [ count ]
1 : a hard hit using a part of the body or an object
He delivered a mighty blow with a club.
a blow with a hammer = a hammer blow
I caught/got him with a heavy blow in the third round. = I landed a heavy blow on him in the third round.
The two boxers exchanged blows. [=hit each other]
The boxer rained blows on his opponent's head. [=the boxer hit his opponent's head many times]
The falling tile struck him with a glancing blow on the head. [=hit his head with less than full force and fell off to one side]
— see also body blow, low blow
2 a : something that is done to fight for or against something
They struck a blow for freedom and against tyranny. [=they did something that helped freedom and opposed tyranny]
2 b : a sudden event that causes trouble, damage, sorrow, etc.
Hopes of peace received a mortal blow when negotiations were blocked.
The injury to their best player was a serious blow to the team's chances. [=the injury did serious harm to the team's chances]
The death of his wife was a terrible/shattering blow from which he never really recovered.
She was disappointed not to get the job, but the promise of another job cushioned/softened the blow. [=the promise of another job made her disappointment less painful or severe]
come to blows
: to begin fighting : to begin hitting each other
They almost came to blows during their argument.
deal a blow — see deal, 1
— compare blow, 2
