I. bomb 1 S3 W3 /bɒm $ bɑːm/ BrE AmE noun [countable]
[ Date: 1600-1700 ; Language: French ; Origin: bombe , from Italian bomba , probably from Latin bombus 'deep sound' , from Greek bombos , from the sound ]
1 . WEAPON a weapon made of material that will explode:
The bomb went off at 9.30 in the morning.
Enemy planes dropped over 200 bombs during the raid.
He was killed in a bomb explosion.
⇨ ↑ smoke bomb , ↑ stink bomb
2 . BAD PERFORMANCE/EVENT American English informal a play, film, event etc that is not successful:
This is just another one of Hollywood’s bland and boring bombs.
3 . be the bomb informal to be very good or exciting:
That new P Diddy CD is the bomb.
4 . the bomb used to describe ↑ nuclear weapons, and especially the ↑ hydrogen bomb :
Voices of dissent began to rise against the bomb.
5 . cost a bomb British English informal to cost a lot of money
6 . make a bomb British English informal to get a lot of money by doing something
• • •
COLLOCATIONS
■ verbs
▪ a bomb explodes/goes off
Forty people were injured when the bomb exploded.
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A 200 pound bomb went off in the car park.
▪ set off a bomb ( also detonate a bomb formal ) (=make a bomb explode)
The area was cleared and the police safely detonated the bomb.
▪ drop a bomb (=from a plane)
Government forces began dropping bombs on rebel positions.
▪ a bomb falls on something
A bomb fell on the cathedral during the war.
▪ plant a bomb (=put a bomb somewhere)
It is thought that right-wing extremists planted the bomb.
■ ADJECTIVES/NOUN + bomb
▪ a nuclear/hydrogen bomb
The North Koreans were developing a nuclear bomb.
▪ an atom/atomic bomb
Oppenheimer was the father of the atomic bomb.
▪ a neutron bomb (=that kills people but does not damage buildings much)
▪ a car bomb (=that makes a car explode)
The car bomb killed 21 shoppers.
▪ a letter bomb ( also a parcel bomb British English ) (=sent in a letter or parcel)
A second letter bomb was found among the unopened mail.
▪ a time bomb (=that is set to explode at a particular time)
The terrorists’ time bomb was planned to cause the maximum carnage.
▪ a petrol bomb British English (=containing petrol)
A petrol bomb was hurled at police as they chased the car.
▪ a nail bomb (=containing nails)
▪ a cluster bomb (=that sends out smaller bombs when it explodes)
▪ a dirty bomb (=that spreads radioactive material)
▪ a smart bomb (=that is guided to the right place)
▪ a terrorist bomb
The aircraft was blown apart by a terrorist bomb.
▪ a suicide bomb (=the person carrying the bomb dies when it explodes)
Each time there is a suicide bomb it is a new blow to peace.
▪ a homemade bomb
Officers discovered several homemade bombs in the trunk of his car.
▪ an unexploded bomb
The workmen found an unexploded bomb.
■ bomb + NOUN
▪ a bomb blast/explosion
The restaurant was destroyed in a massive bomb blast.
▪ a bomb attack
No one has yet claimed responsibility for the bomb attack.
▪ a bomb threat (=when someone leaves a message saying there is a bomb somewhere)
He delayed his flight home because of a bomb threat.
▪ a bomb scare (=when people think there might be a bomb somewhere)
The building was evacuated after a bomb scare.
▪ bomb disposal (=the job of dealing with bombs that have not exploded)
a bomb disposal expert
▪ bomb-making equipment
Police found guns and bomb-making equipment in the house.
• • •
THESAURUS
▪ bomb a weapon that explodes:
The bomb exploded on a bus in Jerusalem during the city’s morning rush hour.
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Fifty-five people were injured in a car bomb attack in Baghdad.
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Morrow was convicted in 1998 of sending four letter bombs (=a small bomb hidden in a package and sent to someone in order to hurt or kill them) to government officials.
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People were worried that terrorists would try to detonate a dirty bomb (=a bomb that contains nuclear materials ) in the city centre.
▪ explosives bombs or substances that can cause explosions:
They used explosives to blow the door off the front of the building.
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The car was packed with 1,000 lbs of high explosives (=powerful explosives) .
▪ device a bomb – used especially in news reports:
Police found the device hidden in a suitcase.
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A bomb threat was received and the building was evacuated, but no device was found.
▪ IED a bomb that has been made using whatever materials are available, especially one used to blow up soldiers travelling through a place. IED is short for ‘improvised explosive device’:
Several soldiers were killed when an IED exploded as their convoy drove by.
▪ mine a type of bomb that is hidden just below the ground or under water, and that explodes when it is touched:
The fields are still full of landmines.
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The ship struck a mine and sank.
▪ grenade ( also hand grenade ) a small bomb that can be thrown by hand or fired from a special gun:
He pulled the pin and threw a grenade toward the enemy’s position.
II. bomb 2 BrE AmE verb
1 . [transitive] to attack a place by leaving a bomb there, or by dropping bombs on it from a plane:
The town was heavily bombed in World War II.
Government aircraft have been bombing civilian areas.
⇨ ↑ carpet-bomb , ↑ dive-bomb
2 . [intransitive always + adverb/preposition] British English informal to move or drive very quickly:
Suddenly a police car came bombing down the high street.
3 . [intransitive and transitive] American English informal to fail a test very badly:
I bombed my midterm.
4 . [intransitive] American English if a play, film, event etc bombs, it is not successful:
His latest play bombed on Broadway.
be bombed out phrasal verb
if a building or the people in it are bombed out, the building is completely destroyed:
My family were bombed out in 1941.