Phrasal verb
blow up
Irregular verb
Forms
Infinitive
blow up
Past
blew up
Past participle
blown up
Definition
phrasal verb. to explode or to destroy something with an explosion; it can also mean to fill something with air, like a balloon.
phrasal verb. to undergo or cause to undergo a sudden, violent expansion or destruction; also used transitively to denote the inflation of an object.
Examples
“The soldiers had to blow up the old bridge.”
“We need to blow up fifty balloons before the birthday party starts at noon.”
“The structural integrity of the building was so compromised that the demolition crew decided to blow up the entire north wing.”
Examples
simple
“The soldiers had to blow up the old bridge.”
contextual
“We need to blow up fifty balloons before the birthday party starts at noon.”
complex
“The structural integrity of the building was so compromised that the demolition crew decided to blow up the entire north wing.”
Usage
when it means to inflate, it is usually transitive; when it means to explode, it can be transitive or intransitive.
Teaching tip
mention the informal figurative sense 'to get very angry' (e.g., 'he blew up at me') to show how the idea of an explosion applies to emotions.
Pitfall
He blew the balloon up it.
He blew the balloon up.
if using a pronoun as the object, it must go between the verb and the particle.
Etymology
From Middle English blow up, blowe up, dissimilated forms of earlier Middle English upblowen (> English upblow), equivalent to blow + up. Compare West Frisian opblaze (“to blow up, inflate”), Dutch opblazen (“to blow up, inflate”), German aufblähen and aufblasen (“to blow up, inflate”), Swedish blåsa upp (“to blow up, inflate”), Icelandic blása upp (“to blow up, inflate”), Gothic 𐌿𐍆𐌱𐌻𐌴𐍃𐌰𐌽 (ufblēsan, “to blow or puff up”).
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Phrasal verb
Particles
up
Separability
optional
Pattern
blow + (object) + up
Synonyms
Antonyms
Related words
Grammar
- Exam level
- CambridgeCambridgeCambridge English QualificationsThe exam suite from Cambridge University Press & Assessment, from A1 Movers up to C2 Proficiency. The benchmark names double as CEFR labels.A2 KeyIELTSIELTSInternational English Language Testing SystemThe 0–9 band test co-owned by the British Council, IDP, and Cambridge. Used for university entry, work, and migration.3.0–4.0TOEFL iBTTOEFL iBTTest of English as a Foreign Language, Internet-Based TestETS's academic English test, the standard route for US university admissions. Scored 0–120, with a 1–6 scale since 2026.1–6 scale: 2.0–2.524–43TOEICTOEICTest of English for International CommunicationETS's workplace English test, big in Japan and Korea. Listening & Reading scores 10–990 and tops out at C1.225–549
- Frequency
- Common
- Level
- A2 · ElementaryOxford
- Updated
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