explode

I

(New American Roget's College Thesaurus)

v. destroy; burst, detonate, fire, discharge; reject; refute, discredit, expose, disprove. See confutation, violence, excitability.

II

(Roget's IV) v.

1. [To burst]

Syn. blow up, blow out, blast, blow a fuse, break out, erupt, go off, detonate, discharge, backfire, fly apart, fly into pieces, shatter, rupture, fracture, split, convulse, collapse, thunder, blow off, pop, blow to smithereens*; see also rage 1 .

2. [To discredit]

Syn. disprove, refute, confute; see disprove .

III

(Roget's 3 Superthesaurus) v.

1. blow up pop, burst, detonate, blow, discharge, erupt, fulminate, blast, bang, thunder, burst into flames.

2. discredit debunk, expose, refute, invalidate, shoot down, belie, puncture.

IV

(Roget's Thesaurus II) verb 1. To release or cause to release energy suddenly and violently, especially with a loud noise: blast, blow1 (up), burst, detonate, fire, fulminate, go off, touch off. See EXPLOSION. 2. To come open or fly apart suddenly and violently, as from internal pressure: blow1 (out), burst, pop1. Slang: bust. See EXPLOSION. 3. To become manifest suddenly and in full force: break out, burst (forth or out), erupt, flare (up). See EXPLOSION, START. 4. To be or become angry: anger, blow up, boil over, bristle, burn, flare up, foam, fume, rage, seethe. Informal: steam. Idioms: blow a fuse, blow a gasket, blow one's stack (or top), breathe fire, fly off the handle, get hot under the collar, hit the ceiling (or roof), lose one's temper, see red. See FEELINGS. 5. To increase or expand suddenly, rapidly, or without control: mushroom, snowball. See INCREASE. 6. To cause to be no longer believed or valued: debunk, deflate, discredit, puncture. Informal: shoot down. Idioms: knock the bottom out of, shoot full of holes. See VALUE.