bomb
gb/bˈɑm/ us/bˈɑm/
B1
Anglais
~ 2400
Sens
0 sens
Nom
B1
entity
1
Explosive weapon device
A weapon that explodes and can hurt people or damage buildings.
Schéma d’usage :
a [type] bomb
Erreur fréquente :
Learners may confuse 'bomb' with 'missile'; a missile is launched and travels to the target, while a bomb is often dropped or placed and then explodes.
Synonymes
explosive (General term for any substance or device that can explode, not just weapons.)
Antonymes
firearm (A weapon that shoots projectiles without exploding itself.)
Collocations
drop a bomb
|plant a bomb
|make a bomb
|defuse a bomb
|bomb blast
|bomb threat
Thèmes
military
|safety
|crime
|politics
|core_vocabulary
Exemples
- The police evacuated the building after finding a bomb.
- A car bomb exploded in the city center last night.
- They used a robot to defuse the bomb before it went off.
- The bomb caused significant damage to nearby homes.
- He was arrested for trying to make a homemade bomb.
Exemples pédagogiques
- The police found a bomb in the bag.
- A bomb exploded in the street.
- They made a bomb to hurt people.
- The bomb was very dangerous.
- The army dropped a bomb on the target.
Verbe
informal
B2
action
2
Fail completely
To do something very badly or fail at it.
Schéma d’usage :
to bomb [a test/performance/interview]
Erreur fréquente :
Some learners confuse this with the literal explosive meaning; in informal contexts about performance, it means to fail, not to blow up something.
Synonymes
flop (More often used for entertainment or business products than personal performance.)
Antonymes
ace (Informal term for doing extremely well at something, especially a test.)
Collocations
bomb an exam
|bomb a presentation
|bomb on stage
Thèmes
education
|entertainment
|core_vocabulary
Exemples
- I totally bombed my driving test last week.
- The comedian bombed on stage and left early.
- She bombed her interview and didn’t get the job.
- Their new play bombed with critics.
- He bombed the math quiz because he didn’t study.
Exemples pédagogiques
- I bombed my English test.
- He bombed his job interview.
- The singer bombed on stage.
- She bombed the quiz and was sad.
- They bombed the show last night.
Nom
informal
B2
property
3
Something excellent
Something very good or cool.
Erreur fréquente :
Learners may think 'the bomb' means something dangerous; in slang it means excellent.
Synonymes
awesome thing (General informal praise, not tied to slang form 'the bomb'.)
Antonymes
terrible thing (Opposite in quality; something very bad.)
Collocations
the bomb
Thèmes
slang
|entertainment
|daily_life
|communication
|core_vocabulary
Exemples
- That new burger place is the bomb!
- Her homemade brownies are the bomb.
- This song is the bomb — I can’t stop listening to it.
Exemples pédagogiques
- This pizza is the bomb.
- Your new phone is the bomb.
- That movie was the bomb.
Verbe
B1
action
4
Attack with explosives
To attack a place by using bombs.
Schéma d’usage :
to bomb [a place/target]
Synonymes
shell (Usually refers to artillery fire rather than aerial bombs.)
Antonymes
protect (To keep safe from attack rather than cause destruction.)
Collocations
bomb a city
|bomb enemy positions
Thèmes
military
|politics
|core_vocabulary
Exemples
- The air force bombed the enemy base at dawn.
- They threatened to bomb the capital if demands weren’t met.
- During the war, many towns were heavily bombed.
Exemples pédagogiques
- They will bomb the city tonight.
- The army bombed the enemy base.
- Planes bombed the town during the war.
Verbe
informal
B2
action
5
Move quickly by vehicle
To go somewhere very fast in a car or on a bike.
Schéma d’usage :
to bomb [along/down] [a road/path]
Synonymes
speed (Neutral term for going fast; 'bomb' is more informal and suggests recklessness.)
Antonymes
crawl (Move very slowly.)
Collocations
bomb along the highway
|bomb down the hill
Thèmes
travel
|transportation
Exemples
- He was bombing down the motorway when the police stopped him.
- We bombed along the coastal road with the music blasting.
- The kids were bombing down the hill on their bikes.
Exemples pédagogiques
- He was bombing down the road fast.
- We bombed along the street in the car.
- The boys bombed down the hill on bikes.
Grammaire
Forme canonique
bomb
API
GB/bˈɑm/
US/bˈɑm/
Syllabes et accentuation
bomb (1 syllabe)
Stress on 1st syllable (bomb)
Formes du mot
Noun
- Base: bomb
- Plural: bombs
Verb
- Base: bomb
- 3rd Person Singular: bombs
- Present Participle: bombing
- Past: bombed
Famille de mots
Expressions
bomb out
1/bˈɑm ˈaʊt/
phrasal verb
informal
Fail or be forced out due to failure
To fail at something or have to leave because you failed.
Exemples
- He bombed out of college after two semesters.
- Their team bombed out in the first round of the tournament.
drop a bombshell
1/dɹˈɑp ə bˈɑmʃˌɛl/
idiom
informal
Announce shocking news suddenly
To say something that surprises people a lot.
Exemples
- She dropped a bombshell when she announced she was quitting her job.
- The prime minister dropped a political bombshell during the debate.
go like a bomb
1/ɡˈoʊ lˈaɪk ə bˈɑm/
idiom
informal
Be very successful or fast-moving
To be very successful or work very well; sometimes also to move very fast.
Exemples
- Her new bakery is going like a bomb since it opened.
- The old car still goes like a bomb on the highway.
look like a bomb hit it
1/lˈʊk lˈaɪk ə bˈɑm hˈɪt ˈɪt/
idiom
informal
Be very messy or disorderly
To be very messy, as if something bad happened there.
Exemples
- Your room looks like a bomb hit it! Clean up now.
- After the party, the kitchen looked like a bomb had hit it.