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Glite Dictionary
to drop the bomb

to drop the bomb

3 6.2
To tell people shocking news suddenly
  • idiom
  • /drɑp ðə bɑm/
translation icon : dar la noticia
  • When I asked him where he was taking us, that's when he dropped the bomb on me that he was also the high priest of the Shiva Temple.
  • just drop the bomb

And then mid meal is when we're going to drop the bomb about Culver's and the fact that these are from Culver's.

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Examples

  • Oh, could you, you know how amazing that would be to drop the bomb actually live on BBC?

  • After they dropped the bomb, I came down here looking for my sister in Los Angeles.

    Gangland (2001)

  • What's the plan for a few more weeks and then drop the bomb in September?

  • Then you drop the bomb with this line, verbatim: "It's about the economy, stupid!"

    Blog text (27)

  • During the meeting, she finally dropped the bomb about the layoffs.

  • I was shocked when she dropped the bomb about their engagement.

  • He decided it was time to drop the bomb and tell his friends he was moving away.

Synonyms

to unveil
vsto drop the bomb
109 4.1

To make something known for the first time

is more focused on shock and dramatic surprise than simple revealing
to break the story
vsto drop the bomb
  • Literature
21 3.5

Be the first to tell people about a news event

is about creating a dramatic surprise rather than being the first reporter
to blow the lid off
vsto drop the bomb
  • Literature
8 6.8

Reveal secret information that shocks people

is similar but centers on making a dramatic announcement rather than exposing
to let the cat out of the bag
vsto drop the bomb
  • Informal
5 5.1

To tell a secret that should be kept

is usually a deliberate dramatic revelation rather than an accidental slip
to drop a bombshell
vsto drop the bomb
4 5.5

To suddenly tell people something very surprising that shocks them

is the same idea expressed in a different phrase
to shock the hell out of someone
vsto drop the bomb
  • Informal
2 8.1

To surprise someone suddenly and very strongly

involves making a deliberate shocking announcement rather than just surprising someone
to make a big announcement
vsto drop the bomb
2 3.4

To tell important news to many people in public

is more unexpected and emotionally shocking than a formal announcement
to blow wide open
vsto drop the bomb
  • Literature
1 6.5

To make a secret suddenly become known

is more about a dramatic, attention grabbing announcement rather than full exposure
to explode a bombshell
vsto drop the bomb
  • Informal
7.7

Make a shocking announcement that surprises people

is the same kind of dramatic reveal with equal shock
to drop the McNuke
vsto drop the bomb
  • Slang
9.9

Suddenly bring up a shocking topic to change the tone of a discussion

focuses more on a dramatic public revelation rather than controversy

Antonyms

to conceal
282 3.7

To hide something so others cannot see or find it

How Shocking

to drop the bomb
3 6.2
to reveal
∞ 2.3
to mention
∞ 1.0
to hint
136 2.0

Surface Forms

drop the bomb infinitive
dropped the bomb past
dropped the bomb past participle
dropping the bomb present participle
drops the bomb third person singular

Morphology

drop + the + bomb

The sense 'to reveal shocking news' is motivated by the literal idea of dropping a bomb causing sudden shock, so a learner who knows 'drop' and 'bomb' can plausibly infer a sudden, impactful action. However the meaning is metaphorical (news as an explosive event) and relies on pragmatic inference rather than direct compositional rules, so it is not fully predictable without prior exposure.

Etymology

The phrase drop the bomb comes from the picture of someone dropping a bomb, causing a sudden, loud explosion that shocks people. One popular idea is that speakers used that image to talk about big, unexpected news, so to 'drop the bomb' now means to make a surprising or 'shocking' announcement.