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to blow out of the water

to blow out of the water

4 6.8
To surprise and beat someone or something by a large amount
  • idiom
  • Informal
translation icon : sorprender
  • When they revealed their latest product, it blew everyone out of the water with its advanced features.
  • get blown out of the water
  • just blew out of the water

But the both of them just blew us out of the water consistently.

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Examples

  • But with the new Android OS coming around the corner, it could blow the iPhone out of the water.

    Blog text (14)
  • His hard work has blown me out of the water.

    Blog text (19)
  • Any idea that I had has been sort of blown out of the water by what other people have created and thought.

  • Their performance at Live Aid blew everyone else out of the water.

    Blog text (31)
  • But what happened was the site, the designs on the site just totally blew them out of the water, right?

  • Again, beef liver blows kale out of the water, leaves it crying in the dust.

  • Small-business owners have to be ready for anything, be it a change in your personal financial situation or an outside trend that blows you out of the water.

    Blog text (18)
  • But, oh man, Chloe blew my expectations out of the water, and her writing literally demanded that I put this author on my auto-buy list.

    Blog text (24)
  • But then Marissa Mayer blew everyone out of the water when it was announced that she would be the new CEO of Yahoo.

    Blog text (4)
  • The team's innovative strategy completely blew their competition out of the water in the final match.

Synonyms

to shock
vsto blow out of the water
202 2.1

To cause someone to feel sudden surprise and distress

adds a decisive defeat or total overpowering sense beyond mere surprise
to blow your mind
vsto blow out of the water
  • Informal
50 6.2

To surprise someone a lot and make them feel excited

tends to mean overpowering or defeating decisively, not just impressing
to overwhelm
vsto blow out of the water
42 4.0

Defeat someone or something completely using greater force

also includes a strong surprise or sudden overwhelming effect
to take aback
vsto blow out of the water
39 4.2

To surprise someone so much that they do not know what to say

adds the idea of overwhelming or defeating decisively beyond mere surprise
to floor
vsto blow out of the water
15 6.6

To surprise someone so much they cannot react

also implies decisive defeat or complete overpowering rather than only a brief stunned reaction
to blow something out of the water
vsto blow out of the water
  • Informal
12 6.0

To beat someone or something completely by a lot

is the same meaning but used without a direct object form
to shock the hell out of someone
vsto blow out of the water
  • Informal
2 8.1

To surprise someone suddenly and very strongly

is more about decisively defeating or overwhelming rather than sudden strong surprise
to hit like a ton of bricks
vsto blow out of the water
  • Informal
1 8.0

To feel a sudden strong shock or surprise

is more about decisive defeat or overpowering others than sudden shock
to hit like a tidal wave
vsto blow out of the water
7.3

To suddenly feel a very strong emotion that you cannot control

is more about decisive defeat rather than only emotional impact
to ball over
vsto blow out of the water
  • Informal
8.5

To make someone feel very surprised

is focused more on decisive defeat or overwhelming victory than pure amazement

Antonyms

492 1.0

Fail to do what someone hoped for

How Overwhelming

to obliterate
71 7.5
to rout
15 7.4
to blow out of the water
  • Informal
4 6.8
to beat
1.4

Surface Forms

blowing out of the water present participle
blows out of the water third person singular
blown out of the water past participle

Morphology

blow + out + of + the + water

The literal meanings of 'blow', 'out' and 'water' evoke a forceful physical action, so learners may sense a strong or destructive sense, but the specific idiomatic meaning 'defeat/overwhelm decisively' is a metaphorical extension not directly derivable from the parts. Because the connection relies on metaphorical imagery rather than straightforward composition, a B1 learner who knows the words is unlikely to predict the exact sense without prior exposure.

Etymology

The idiom blow out of the water may come from old sea battles where a very strong cannon shot would blow a ship right out of the water, destroying it so it could not fight. So, the phrase now means 'to surprise or defeat someone completely'.