blast
B2Informal to neutral; technical in explosives/industrial contexts.
Definition
Meaning
A sudden, powerful explosion or a strong gust of air.
An enjoyable experience or party; a severe reprimand; a loud sound from a horn or speaker; a damaging influence (e.g., on plants).
Linguistics
Semantic Notes
Polysemous: spans physical phenomena (explosion/wind), social events, and metaphorical force/reprimand. The verb 'to blast' is highly productive.
Dialectal Variation
British vs American Usage
Differences
British English uses 'blast!' as a mild expletive of annoyance more readily than American English. In American English, 'blast furnace' is more industrial. The phrase 'full blast' (at maximum power/volume) is equally common.
Connotations
Similar in both, but 'to have a blast' (have a great time) is slightly more informal/positive in AmE. 'Blast' as a reprimand (e.g., 'He got a blast from the boss') is slightly more common in BrE.
Frequency
Comparably frequent, but the verb form is slightly more common in AmE news/sports (e.g., 'blast a home run').
Vocabulary
Collocations
Grammar
Valency Patterns
N blast V (A blast rocked the building)V N (The workers blasted the rock)V N with N (They blasted the wall with water)V N ADJ (He blasted the door open)V that CLAUSE (Critics blasted that the policy was flawed)Vocabulary
Synonyms
Strong
Neutral
Weak
Vocabulary
Antonyms
Phrases
Idioms & Phrases
- “(at) full blast”
- “blast from the past”
- “blast off”
- “have a blast”
Usage
Context Usage
Business
Rare; may refer to a 'blast email' (mass email marketing).
Academic
Technical in geology/engineering ('rock blasting', 'blast wave'). Metaphorical in social sciences ('a blast of populism').
Everyday
Common: 'We had a blast at the party.' 'A blast of cold air came in.'
Technical
Specific in mining, demolition, aerodynamics ('blast radius', 'jet blast').
Examples
By Part of Speech
verb
British English
- The construction crew will blast the old bridge tomorrow.
- The manager blasted the team for their poor performance.
- He blasted the horn angrily in the traffic jam.
American English
- The quarterback blasted the ball down the field.
- The senator blasted the new bill as irresponsible.
- They blasted the AC to cool the room quickly.
adverb
British English
- (Not standard; only in phrase 'full blast') The heaters were on full blast.
American English
- (Not standard; only in phrase 'full blast') She ran full blast toward the finish line.
adjective
British English
- The blast doors sealed shut for safety. (Attributive use)
- We're organising a blast event for the summer fête.
American English
- The blast radius was carefully calculated. (Attributive use)
- It was a blast weekend for everyone involved.
Examples
By CEFR Level
- The children had a blast at the playground.
- I heard a loud blast from the street.
- A sudden blast of wind blew my hat away.
- They blasted the music too loudly.
- The demolition team used explosives to blast through the rock.
- The critic blasted the film for its lack of originality.
- The policy faced a blistering blast from opposition leaders.
- Archaeologists uncovered a tomb, a real blast from the past.
Learning
Memory Aids
Mnemonic
Imagine a BLAST of wind from a FAST balloon popping. BLAST sounds FAST and powerful.
Conceptual Metaphor
FORCE/IMPACT IS A PHYSICAL EXPLOSION (e.g., 'The news blasted his hopes'; 'The singer blasted onto the scene').
Watch out
Common Pitfalls
Translation Traps (for Russian speakers)
- Не переводить 'to have a blast' как 'иметь взрыв' — правильно 'отлично провести время'.
- Не путать 'blast' (взрыв/поток) с 'bless' (благословлять) в устной речи.
Common Mistakes
- Using 'blast' as a countable noun only ('I heard three blasts' is fine). Confusing 'blast' (forceful event) with 'blaze' (fire). Incorrect preposition: 'at full blast' NOT 'in full blast'.
Practice
Quiz
In which sentence does 'blast' mean 'a strong criticism'?
FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes, in informal contexts 'to have a blast' means to have a very enjoyable time.
Primarily, but it can be used metaphorically for any rapid, energetic start (e.g., 'The project blasted off successfully').
'Blast' often emphasizes the force/pressure wave (air blast, sound blast), while 'explosion' focuses on the violent event with fire/shrapnel. They often overlap.
As a noun for an explosion in technical contexts, yes. For 'a great time' or as a verb meaning 'criticize severely', it is informal.