- explosion
- noun1 sudden loud bursting/explodingADJECTIVE▪ almighty (esp. BrE), big, deafening, enormous, great, huge, large, loud, major, massive, powerful, tremendous, violent▪ minor, small▪ muffled▪
There was a muffled explosion somewhere on their right.
▪ distant▪The floor shook with a distant explosion.
▪ controlled▪ test▪a nuclear test explosion
▪ accidental▪ bomb, chemical, gas, mine, volcanic▪ atomic, nuclear▪ terrorist▪ social (figurative)▪If no action is taken, the country runs the risk of a social explosion.
VERB + EXPLOSION▪ cause, create, set off, trigger▪The build-up of gas caused a small explosion.
▪ carry out (esp. BrE)▪Bomb disposal experts carried out a controlled explosion on the suspect package.
▪ hear▪ prevent▪ surviveEXPLOSION + VERB▪ come, happen, occur, take place▪The explosion came 20 minutes after a coded warning to the police.
▪The explosion occurred just after noon.
▪ erupt, go off▪A massive explosion erupted behind him.
▪ rock sth, shake sth▪A huge explosion rocked the entire building.
▪The explosion shook nearby homes.
▪ blow sth out, destroy sth, rip through sth▪An explosion blew out the front windows.
▪A massive explosion ripped through the chemical works.
▪ injure sb, kill sb▪ cause sth▪The explosion caused major structural damage.
▪ echo, sound▪A loud explosion echoed around the valley.
PREPOSITION▪ in an/the explosion▪Three people were injured in the explosion.
2 sudden large increaseADJECTIVE▪ sudden▪ great▪a great explosion of creativity
▪ veritable▪In the 1860s a veritable explosion of major scientific publications took place.
▪ population▪ information▪How can we keep up with the information explosion?
▪ price, wage (BrE)VERB + EXPLOSION▪ see, witness▪I believe we will see an explosion in lawsuits of this kind.
EXPLOSION + VERB▪ occur, take placePREPOSITION▪ explosion in▪a sudden explosion in the number of students
▪ explosion of▪an explosion of interest in learning Japanese
Collocations dictionary. 2013.
