1
as in exploded
to break open or into pieces usually because of internal pressure
a balloon popped suddenly and startled us all
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in snapped
to break suddenly with an explosive sound
the last strand popped, causing the chandelier to drop to the floor with a great crash
Synonyms & Similar Words
3
as in shattered
to cause to break open or into pieces by or as if by an explosive
popping popcorn over a campfire
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
4
as in drilled
to strike with a missile from a gun
went into the woods hoping to pop the rabbit that was eating our vegetables
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of popped
The second Emma Heming Willis popped up on the Zoom screen, a wave of grief washed over me.
—
David Oliver, USA Today, 11 Sep. 2025
The loud, colorful Northern Thai restaurant has always been a celeb magnet—Guillermo del Toro, Shawn Mendes, Jacob Elordi, James Harden and Simu Liu have all popped by in recent years.
—Kate Dingwall, Forbes.com, 9 Sep. 2025
Brighthouse Financial — The insurance stock popped 11% after the Financial Times reported that private capital group Aquarian Holdings was in advanced talks with two Middle Eastern investors to finance its acquisition of Brighthouse .
—Sarah Min, CNBC, 9 Sep. 2025
In August 2017, PEOPLE exclusively confirmed the couple were in a relationship, and in 2021, Stonestreet officially popped the question to Schweitzer after five years of dating.
—Natalia Senanayake, PEOPLE, 9 Sep. 2025
Calafiore popped the question to Laratta in a surprise proposal at Riverside Gardens Park in Red Bank, New Jersey, just as the sun was setting.
—Hannah Sacks, People.com, 8 Sep. 2025
Ultraslim soles have since popped up everywhere from Louis Vuitton to Adidas—but the OG pair is still our favorite investment of the bunch.
—Amina Ayoud, Glamour, 3 Sep. 2025
Almost instantaneously, headlines inaccurately stating that Europe had banned all gel manicures popped up, quickly followed by fact-free fearmongering on social media.
—Marci Robin, Allure, 3 Sep. 2025
Signs of protest have popped up outside the single-story Looney Tunes building that is scheduled to be razed to make way for base camp space.
—Lynette Rice, Deadline, 29 Mar. 2025
David Oliver, USA Today, 11 Sep. 2025
The loud, colorful Northern Thai restaurant has always been a celeb magnet—Guillermo del Toro, Shawn Mendes, Jacob Elordi, James Harden and Simu Liu have all popped by in recent years.
—Kate Dingwall, Forbes.com, 9 Sep. 2025
Brighthouse Financial — The insurance stock popped 11% after the Financial Times reported that private capital group Aquarian Holdings was in advanced talks with two Middle Eastern investors to finance its acquisition of Brighthouse .
—Sarah Min, CNBC, 9 Sep. 2025
In August 2017, PEOPLE exclusively confirmed the couple were in a relationship, and in 2021, Stonestreet officially popped the question to Schweitzer after five years of dating.
—Natalia Senanayake, PEOPLE, 9 Sep. 2025
Calafiore popped the question to Laratta in a surprise proposal at Riverside Gardens Park in Red Bank, New Jersey, just as the sun was setting.
—Hannah Sacks, People.com, 8 Sep. 2025
Ultraslim soles have since popped up everywhere from Louis Vuitton to Adidas—but the OG pair is still our favorite investment of the bunch.
—Amina Ayoud, Glamour, 3 Sep. 2025
Almost instantaneously, headlines inaccurately stating that Europe had banned all gel manicures popped up, quickly followed by fact-free fearmongering on social media.
—Marci Robin, Allure, 3 Sep. 2025
Signs of protest have popped up outside the single-story Looney Tunes building that is scheduled to be razed to make way for base camp space.
—Lynette Rice, Deadline, 29 Mar. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for popped
Verb
-
The streets of Boise exploded in a burst of color and music on Sunday as the Boise Pride Parade swept down River Street.—
Sally Krutzig,
Idaho Statesman,
8 Sep. 2025
-
As large language models like OpenAI’s GPT-3 and GPT-4 exploded onto the scene, students and teaching assistants alike began questioning whether assessments ought to be handled differently.—
Nick Lichtenberg,
Fortune,
7 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Quarterback and comedian snapped a picture together.—
Pete Sampson,
New York Times,
10 Sep. 2025
-
Rhamondre Stevenson also out-snapped the rookie 46 to 25 on offense, a ratio that ought to even out considering Henderson was the only one who broke a tackle between them.—
Andrew Callahan,
Boston Herald,
9 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
In the aftermath, Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko recorded a video message from the building’s shattered upper floors.—
Katya Soldak,
Forbes.com,
9 Sep. 2025
-
Photos of the aftermath showed the front windshield on the roof of the bus shattered and nearly flattened.—
Michael Rios,
CNN Money,
8 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
My parents drilled this into me.—
Kendra MacDonald,
Forbes.com,
8 Sep. 2025
-
Jake Cronenworth drilled a comebacker off Brown’s leg for an RBI single.—
Patrick Saunders,
Denver Post,
7 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Israel’s concentration on destroying Gaza City’s infrastructure has utilized a variety of means, including heavy bombs and, recently, old armored vehicles laden with a large amount of explosives and detonated via remote control.—
Brady Knox,
The Washington Examiner,
8 Sep. 2025
-
In September 2024, Israel blew up the group’s pagers, causing gruesome injuries as the devices detonated in Hezbollah operatives’ pockets.—
Graeme Wood,
The Atlantic,
2 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
After McNeil refused to get out of his car, Bowers smashed the driver’s side window, punched McNeil in the head and pulled him out of the SUV.—
Christopher Cann,
USA Today,
10 Sep. 2025
-
Protesters smashed windows and looted local businesses and set government buildings on fire.—
Lex Harvey,
CNN Money,
10 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
When the oil begins to dry up, wells are supposed to be plugged to prevent toxic, climate-altering chemicals from escaping.—
September 7,
NPR,
7 Sep. 2025
-
Since the rise of generative artificial intelligence in 2022, the technology has mostly been plugged into parts of the production pipeline as far as its deployment in Hollywood.—
Winston Cho,
HollywoodReporter,
5 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
The Cleveland Browns blew both a golden opportunity at what would’ve been the surprise upset of Week 1 and a chance to add to the Cincinnati Bengals’ early-season misery of the past few years.—
Zak Keefer,
New York Times,
8 Sep. 2025
-
On a 3rd and 1, Chiefs running back Kareem Hunt got a first down with the help of Kelce blocking on the line, but the tight end blocked a little bit longer after the whistle blew.—
Ryan Morik,
FOXNews.com,
6 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Popped.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/popped. Accessed 14 Sep. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share