to blow
- verb
- /bloʊ/
- A pod of whales came up to blow nearby before sounding again.
- whales blow
- blow at the water
Examples
-
Caddy swam closer and blew a spume of water from her blowhole; Tegan smiled in delight.
Fiction book (1998) -
Sometimes a whale blows up a column of shining spray and leaves a green wake to show its hidden path.
Blog text (22) -
The whale blows again, drenching Chuck in more spray.
Fiction book (2000) -
We saw the hump of a gray's ridged back; we saw it blow.
Fiction book (2002) -
Caddy swam closer and blew a spume of water from her blowhole; Tegan smiled in delight.
-
The gray whale surfaced to blow a mist of water into the air, marking its presence.
Synonyms
To flow out quickly and forcefully in a strong stream
Idioms
- Informal
To leave a place quickly because you do not want to be there
- Offensive
Informal and rude way to use up all your energy or resources at once
Phrasal Verbs
- Informal
To not attend or take part in something you should, often to do something else instead
- Informal
Do something active, like go for a run, to feel less angry or stressed
To touch your lips with one hand then move that hand toward someone to show love
To make a small round pocket of air in soapy water by puffing with your mouth
- Informal
A plan or action that fails suddenly and causes big problems for the person who planned it
- Informal
Make someone have bad back pain from lifting something heavy
Compounds
A large fly with a shiny blue-green body that lays eggs on dead animals and in wounds
- Specialized
A machine that makes hollow plastic items like bottles by heating plastic and using air to shape it
- Specialized
A machine that makes hollow plastic items like bottles by using air to push heated plastic into a mold
Surface Forms
Etymology
The verb blow for whales comes from the simple idea 'to move air' or 'to breathe out'; whales 'blow' by spouting air and water from their blowhole. So watching a whale 'blow' is seeing it breathe at the surface.