Blow up
Blow up verb - To become very angry.
Usage example: she blew up at everybody after a very long and very bad day
Explode
Explode verb - To break open or into pieces usually because of internal pressure.
Usage example: the building was wrecked when a powerful bomb exploded
Blow up is a synonym for explode in action topic. You can use "Blow up" instead a verb "Explode", if it concerns topics such as detonate, burst out, lose one's temper, feelings. popular alternative
Mutual synonyms
Both terms in one sentence
- Beating the Dragon Tank boss in Chrono Trigger prompts Crono to jump up on its back and deliver a final blow with his katana, making it explode and blow up a bridge behind you.
Source: Coup de Grâce Cutscene -
Parodied by this animated gif, where a hacker manages to blackout a city, blow up a building, detonate a nuclear payload and explode a watermelon simply by typing on a laptop.
Source: Everything Is Online -
Oddly enough, even though the bomb will never blow up during gameplay, it will explode in the ending FMV if it happens to be armed.
Source: Press X to Die
Cite this Source
Explode and Blow up. (2016). Retrieved 2026, July 21, from https://thesaurus.plus/related/blow_up/explode
Blow up & Explode. N.p., 2016. Web. 21 Jul. 2026. <https://thesaurus.plus/related/blow_up/explode>.
Explode or Blow up. 2016. Accessed July 21, 2026. https://thesaurus.plus/related/blow_up/explode.
Google Ngram Viewer shows how "blow up" and "explode" have occurred on timeline