Basic Details
Word: Explosion
Part of Speech: Noun
Meaning: A sudden, violent burst with a loud noise, as when a bomb or a gas cylinder blows up. It is also used for a sudden great increase, like a population explosion.
Synonyms: blast, burst, bang, outburst
Antonyms: implosion
How to Spell Explosion
Syllables: ex - plo - sion
Tricky part: Explode turns its d into s, so the ending is sion, never tion. Explotion is the slip to watch.
Watch out for: explotion, exploshion, explosian
Memory tip: Explode loses its d and takes s, the same change as in divide and division: explode, explosion.
Usage Examples
Example 1: The explosion of a firecracker made the dog hide under the bed.
Example 2: Cities face a population explosion as more people move in for work.
Example 3: We heard the explosion from the quarry three kilometres away.
Fun Fact
The 1883 eruption of Krakatoa in Indonesia made one of the loudest sounds in recorded history; it was heard on Rodrigues Island, nearly 4,800 km away.
Practise the CREST Way
Word Cookie
Find the misspelt word in the sentence:
The loud explotion from the chemistry laboratory turned out to be a harmless bottle of soda water that someone had shaken hard before opening it.
a) laboratory
b) opening
c) harmless
d) explotion
Show answer
d) explotion. Explosion comes from explode, and the d turns into s, not t.
Spell-o-Spell
Three words in the list are spelt correctly and one is misspelt. Choose the meaning of the misspelt word.
1. avalanche 2. explosian 3. drought 4. tremor
a) a mass of snow sliding fast down a mountain
b) a long period with little or no rain
c) a slight shaking of the ground
d) a sudden violent burst with a loud noise
Show answer
d) a sudden violent burst with a loud noise. Explosian gets the last vowel wrong: explode becomes explosion, ending in ion.
Word Connection
Choose the synonym of the word explosion as used in the sentence:
There was an explosion of laughter when the clown slipped on the banana peel.
a) silence
b) outburst
c) whisper
d) end
Show answer
b) outburst. Here explosion means a sudden outburst of laughter, not a blast.
Multiple Choice Questions
1. A population explosion is ____.
a) a fall in the number of births
b) a bomb in a crowded place
c) a census form
d) a sudden, large rise in the number of people
Show answer
d) a sudden, large rise in the number of people
2. When a container collapses inwards instead of bursting out, it is called ____.
a) an implosion
b) an erosion
c) an extension
d) an expulsion
Show answer
a) an implosion
