I. bolt 1 /bəʊlt $ boʊlt/ BrE AmE noun [countable]
[ Language: Old English ; Origin: 'short arrow' ]
1 . LOCK a metal bar that you slide across a door or window to fasten it
2 .
SCREW a screw with a flat head and no point, for fastening things together
3 . a bolt from/out of the blue news that is sudden and unexpected:
Was this money a bolt from the blue or did you know you were going to get it?
4 . bolt of lightning lightning that appears as a white line in the sky:
There’s not much left of his house after it was struck by a bolt of lightning.
⇨ ↑ thunderbolt
5 . make a bolt for it British English to suddenly try to escape from somewhere:
They attacked the driver and he straightaway made a bolt for it.
6 . WEAPON a short heavy ↑ arrow that is fired from a ↑ crossbow
7 . CLOTH a large long roll of cloth
⇨ have shot your bolt at ↑ shoot 1 (24), ⇨ the nuts and bolts of something at ↑ nut 1 (6)
II. bolt 2 BrE AmE verb
1 . [intransitive] to suddenly run somewhere very quickly, especially in order to escape or because you are frightened:
The horse reared up and bolted.
Kevin had bolted through the open window.
2 . [transitive] ( also bolt down ) to eat very quickly SYN gobble :
He bolted down his breakfast.
3 . [transitive] to fasten two things together using a bolt
bolt something to something
The cell contained an iron bedframe bolted to the floor.
bolt something together
The boxes were made of heavy panels of metal bolted together.
4 . [transitive] to lock a door or window by sliding a bolt across
• • •
THESAURUS
■ animals running
▪ trot to run fairly slowly, taking short steps – used especially about horses and dogs:
A little dog was trotting behind her.
▪ gallop if a horse gallops, it runs very quickly:
The horse galloped off across the field.
▪ bolt to suddenly run somewhere very fast, especially in order to escape:
Suddenly a fox bolted out from beneath a hedge.
III. bolt 3 BrE AmE adverb
sit/stand bolt upright to sit or stand with your back very straight, often because something has frightened you:
She sat bolt upright in the back seat.