balloon
gb/bəlˈun/ us/bəlˈun/
A2
English
~ 8300
lufi, léggömb, hőlégballon, megugrik, felduzzad, ballonkatéter, ballon, szövegbuborék, beszédbuborék, gondolatbuborék
NOUN
A2
1
Usage pattern:
a [balloon]; [someone] blows up a balloon
The children chased a red balloon across the park.
A gyerekek egy piros lufit kergettek a parkban.
She tied the balloon to the back of the chair for the birthday party.
A születésnapi partira a szék támlájához kötötte a lufit.
As he let go, the helium balloon floated up into the sky.
They spent an hour blowing up balloons and hanging them around the room.
The balloon popped with a loud bang when it touched the hot lamp.
Learner examples
The boy has a blue balloon in his hand.
A fiúnak egy kék lufi van a kezében.
We put many balloons in the living room for the party.
Sok lufit raktunk a nappaliba a bulira.
Be careful, or the balloon will pop.
She bought a big heart-shaped balloon for her friend.
The small child cried when his balloon flew away.
Common mistake:
Learners sometimes spell the word incorrectly as *baloon* with only one 'l'. Another mistake is using 'balloon' to mean any round toy ball; in English, a 'balloon' must be something that you fill with air or gas.
Meaning
inflatable rubber decoration or toy
Collocations
birthday balloon
|party balloon
|helium balloon
|inflate a balloon
|balloon arch
|balloon bouquet
Synonyms
inflatable (More general; can be any object filled with air, not just a party or toy balloon.)
|
ball (Informal and less precise; used by some speakers for balloons, especially by children.)
Antonyms
deflated balloon (Refers to the same object after the air or gas has been let out, so it is no longer full and round.)
Themes
celebrations
|leisure
|daily life
|daily_life
|arts_entertainment
Definition
A soft rubber bag that you fill with air or gas so it becomes big and round, often used at parties or as a toy.
A thin rubber or plastic bag that is filled with air or another gas so that it becomes light and round, used mainly as a decoration or toy.
NOUN
B1
2
hőlégballon
B1
Usage pattern:
a [balloon] takes off; a [balloon] ride
We took a sunrise balloon ride over the valley.
Napkeltekor hőlégballonos sétarepülésen vettünk részt a völgy felett.
The colorful balloon slowly rose into the morning sky.
A színes hőlégballon lassan felemelkedett a reggeli égboltra.
Strong winds forced the pilot to land the balloon early.
They watched the balloons drift silently over the mountains.
A hot-air balloon festival is held in this town every summer.
Learner examples
He wants to fly in a hot-air balloon one day.
Egyszer szeretne hőlégballonnal repülni.
The balloon went up higher and higher.
A hőlégballon egyre magasabbra emelkedett.
Many balloons are in the sky at the festival.
The pilot landed the balloon in a field.
They took photos from the balloon basket.
Common mistake:
Learners sometimes think this meaning only refers to hot air, but it can also involve gas-filled balloons. Another mistake is saying 'balloon plane'; in English, it is normally just called a 'balloon' or a 'hot-air balloon'.
Meaning
hot-air or gas-filled aircraft
Collocations
hot-air balloon
|balloon ride
|balloon festival
|balloon pilot
|balloon flight
|balloon crash
Synonyms
airship (A more technical term; usually refers to a powered, steerable lighter-than-air craft, not a simple hot-air balloon.)
Antonyms
airplane (A heavier-than-air aircraft with wings and engines, contrasting with a lighter-than-air balloon.)
Themes
transport
|travel
|leisure
|transportation
Definition
A very big balloon with a basket that people stand in and fly high in the sky.
A large balloon that is filled with heated air or gas and carries a basket or small cabin underneath for people to ride in the air.
VERB
B2
3
Usage pattern:
[something] balloons; [something] balloons to [amount]
Housing prices have ballooned over the past decade.
A lakásárak megugrottak az elmúlt évtizedben.
Her medical bills ballooned to more than $50,000.
Az orvosi számlái több mint 50 000 dollárra duzzadtak.
The company's workforce ballooned after the merger.
My waistline ballooned when I stopped exercising.
The project’s budget ballooned out of control.
Learner examples
City rents ballooned in just three years.
A városi bérleti díjak mindössze három év alatt megugrottak.
The number of users ballooned to one million.
A felhasználók száma egymillióra duzzadt.
His debts ballooned because he used his credit card too much.
The crowd ballooned as more people arrived.
Her weight ballooned after she changed jobs.
Common mistake:
Learners sometimes use 'balloon' with a direct object, for example *"They ballooned the prices"*. In this sense, 'balloon' is intransitive: you should say *"The prices ballooned"* or *"Prices ballooned to $10"*. Another confusion is using it for any small increase; 'balloon' usually suggests a large or sudden increase.
Meaning
to grow or swell rapidly
Collocations
costs balloon
|prices balloon
|balloon to
|balloon out of control
|balloon in size
|balloon overnight
Synonyms
soar (Commonly used for prices or numbers that rise quickly; slightly more formal and often positive or neutral.)
|
skyrocket (Informal; emphasizes a very fast and often sudden increase.)
Antonyms
shrink (Means to get smaller in size or amount, the opposite of ballooning.)
|
decline (Used for numbers or amounts that go down over time, opposite direction of ballooning.)
Themes
change
|business
|health
|core_vocabulary
Definition
To suddenly become much bigger or much more, often too big or too much.
To increase or swell very quickly in size, number, or amount, often to an undesired or surprising degree.
NOUN
C1
TECHNICAL
4
ballon
C2
Usage pattern:
a [balloon] is inflated; a [balloon] catheter
The surgeon used a balloon to widen the narrowed artery.
A sebész ballont használt a beszűkült artéria kitágítására.
A balloon catheter was inserted into the vessel and gently inflated.
Ballonkatétert vezettek be az érbe, majd óvatosan felfújták.
Once the balloon is expanded, blood flow through the artery improves.
The doctor carefully deflated the balloon before removing the tube.
This procedure uses a small balloon to open blocked heart arteries.
Learner examples
The doctor put a small balloon in the patient’s artery.
Az orvos egy kis ballont helyezett a beteg artériájába.
They inflate the balloon to open the blood vessel.
Felfújják a ballont, hogy kitágítsák az eret.
After the test, the nurse deflates the balloon and takes it out.
A balloon catheter helps the blood flow better.
The balloon is inside the body only for a short time.
Common mistake:
Learners may confuse this with an ordinary party balloon. In medical English, a 'balloon' is part of a device on a tube used inside the body, not a toy.
Meaning
inflatable device used in medicine
Collocations
balloon catheter
|inflate the balloon
|angioplasty balloon
|balloon dilation
|balloon occlusion
|deflate the balloon
Synonyms
inflatable catheter (More descriptive technical phrase; explicitly mentions that the catheter can be inflated.)
Antonyms
noninflatable catheter (A similar medical device that cannot be expanded, contrasting with a balloon catheter.)
Themes
medicine
|science
|health
Definition
A small balloon on a tube that doctors put inside the body and fill with air or liquid during an operation or medical test.
A small inflatable device at the end of a tube that is inserted into the body and expanded with fluid or air during a medical or surgical procedure.
NOUN
B2
TECHNICAL
5
Usage pattern:
a speech balloon; a thought balloon
The artist added a speech balloon to show what the character was saying.
A rajzoló egy szövegbuborékot tett a képre, hogy látszódjon, mit mond a szereplő.
Her thoughts are written in a cloud-shaped thought balloon above her head.
A gondolatai a feje fölött, egy felhő alakú gondolatbuborékban olvashatók.
Each balloon in the comic contains just one short line of dialogue.
The word 'Bang!' appears in a jagged balloon to show the loud noise.
In this panel, the balloon tail points to the man on the left.
Learner examples
In this comic, the words are inside a balloon.
Ebben a képregényben a szavak egy szövegbuborékban vannak.
The speech balloon shows what the boy says.
A szövegbuborék mutatja, mit mond a fiú.
A thought balloon is usually soft and cloud-shaped.
There is no balloon because the man is quiet.
The balloon tail shows who is speaking.
Common mistake:
Learners often only know the term 'speech bubble' and may not recognize 'speech balloon' as the same thing. Some also confuse balloons with captions; captions are usually in boxes and not connected to a character’s mouth.
Meaning
speech or thought bubble in comics
Collocations
speech balloon
|thought balloon
|word balloon
|dialogue balloon
|balloon tail
|empty balloon
Synonyms
speech bubble (The more common everyday term, especially outside professional comics circles.)
Antonyms
caption (Text placed outside a balloon in a comic, often in a box, rather than inside a balloon shape.)
Themes
media
|art
|arts_entertainment
|communication
Definition
In comics and cartoons, the shape around the words that shows what a person is saying or thinking.
A closed shape in a comic or cartoon that contains written speech or thoughts from a character, usually with a pointed tail or series of bubbles.
Grammar
Dictionary form
balloon
IPA
GB/bəlˈun/
US/bəlˈun/
Syllables & stress
bal - loon (2 syllables)
Stress on 2nd syllable (loon)
Word forms
Noun
- Base: balloon
- Plural: balloons
Verb
- Base: balloon
- 3rd Person Singular: balloons
- Present Participle: ballooning
- Past: ballooned
Word family
Forms
balloons
noun
ballooning
verb
ballooned
verb
Related words
balloonist
noun
Expressions
balloon animal
1/bəlˈun ˈænəməl/
fixed phrase
animal shape made from balloons
An animal shape made by twisting long balloons, often at parties or fairs.
Examples
- The clown made a balloon animal for every child.
- She learned how to make a dog-shaped balloon animal from a video.
- A man at the park was selling balloon animals.
balloon mortgage
1/bəlˈun mˈɔɹɡɪd͡ʒ/
fixed phrase
technical
mortgage with big final payment
A type of home loan where you pay small amounts each month and then one very large amount at the end.
Examples
- They chose a balloon mortgage to keep their initial payments low.
- A balloon mortgage can be risky if you cannot pay the final amount.
- The bank officer explained how the balloon mortgage would work after seven years.
balloon payment
1/bəlˈun pˈeɪmənt/
fixed phrase
technical
large final loan repayment
A very big last payment on a loan, after making smaller payments before.
Examples
- The car loan includes a balloon payment at the end of the term.
- They were worried they wouldn’t be able to afford the balloon payment.
- This mortgage has low monthly payments but a large balloon payment after five years.
balloon ride
1/bəlˈun ɹˈaɪd/
fixed phrase
trip in a hot-air balloon
A trip where you fly in a hot-air balloon.
Examples
- They surprised their parents with a balloon ride over the lake.
- A balloon ride at sunset is very popular with tourists.
- We took a balloon ride and saw the city from above.
go down like a lead balloon
1/ɡˈoʊ dˈaʊn lˈaɪk ə lˈid bəlˈun/
idiom
informal
be received very badly
To fail completely with people, for example when a joke or idea gets a very bad reaction.
Examples
- His joke went down like a lead balloon at the meeting.
- The proposal went down like a lead balloon with the board.
- Her comment went down like a lead balloon, and the room fell silent.
hot-air balloon
1/hˈɑt ˈɛɹ bəlˈun/
fixed phrase
large heated-air balloon aircraft
A very big balloon filled with hot air, with a basket under it where people stand and fly in the sky.
Examples
- They booked a hot-air balloon ride for their anniversary.
- Dozens of hot-air balloons filled the sky at sunrise.
- The hot-air balloon landed safely in an open field.
trial balloon
1/tɹˈaɪl bəlˈun/
idiom
test idea to see reaction
An action or statement that is used to see what people think about an idea before you fully do it.
Examples
- The government floated a trial balloon about raising the retirement age.
- Her comment about moving the office was just a trial balloon.
- They released the new policy as a trial balloon to gauge public opinion.
water balloon
1/wˈɔtɚ bəlˈun/
fixed phrase
small balloon filled with water
A small balloon filled with water that people throw for fun, usually in games.
Examples
- The kids had a water balloon fight in the backyard.
- She threw a water balloon and it exploded on the sidewalk.
- We filled a bucket with water balloons for the party.