View synonyms for balloon

balloon

[ buh-loon ]

Phonetic (Standard)IPA

noun

a bag made of thin rubber or other light material, usually brightly colored, inflated with air or with some lighter-than-air gas and used as a children's plaything or as a decoration.
a bag made of a light material, as silk or plastic, filled with heated air or a gas lighter than air, designed to rise and float in the atmosphere and often having a car or gondola attached below for carrying passengers or scientific instruments.
(in drawings, cartoons, etc.) a balloon-shaped outline enclosing words represented as issuing from the mouth of the speaker.
an ornamental ball at the top of a pillar, pier, or the like.
a large, globular wineglass.
Chemistry Now Rare. a round-bottomed flask.

verb (used without object)

to go up or ride in a balloon.
to swell or puff out like a balloon.
to multiply or increase at a rapid rate:
Membership has ballooned beyond all expectations.

verb (used with object)

to fill with air; inflate or distend (something) like a balloon.

adjective

puffed out like a balloon:
balloon sleeves.
Finance. (of a loan, mortgage, or the like) having a payment at the end of the term that is much bigger than previous ones.

balloon

/ bəˈluːn /

noun

an inflatable rubber bag of various sizes, shapes, and colours: usually used as a plaything or party decoration
a large impermeable bag inflated with a lighter-than-air gas, designed to rise and float in the atmosphere. It may have a basket or gondola for carrying passengers, etc See also barrage balloon hot-air balloon
a circular or elliptical figure containing the words or thoughts of a character in a cartoon
1. a kick or stroke that propels a ball high into the air
2. ( as modifier )
  a balloon shot
chem a round-bottomed flask
a large rounded brandy glass
commerce
1. a large sum paid as an irregular instalment of a loan repayment
2. ( as modifier )
  a balloon loan
surgery
1. an inflatable plastic tube used for dilating obstructed blood vessels or parts of the alimentary canal
2. ( as modifier )
  balloon angioplasty
go down like a lead balloon informal.
to be completely unsuccessful or unpopular
when the balloon goes up informal.
when the trouble or action begins

verb

intr to go up or fly in a balloon
intr to increase or expand significantly and rapidly
losses ballooned to £278 million
to inflate or be inflated; distend; swell
the wind ballooned the sails
tr to propel (a ball) high into the air

Discover More

Derived Forms

balˈlooning, noun
balˈloon-ˌlike, adjective
balˈloonist, noun

Discover More

Other Words From

bal·loonlike adjective

Discover More

Word History and Origins

Origin of balloon¹

1570–80; < Upper Italian ballone, equivalent to ball ( a ) (< Langobardic; ball ¹ ) + -one augmentative suffix; or < Middle French ballon < Upper Italian

Discover More

Word History and Origins

Origin of balloon¹

C16 (in the sense: ball, ball game): from Italian dialect ballone , from balla , of Germanic origin; compare Old High German balla ball ¹

Discover More

Idioms and Phrases

In addition to the idiom beginning with balloon , also see go over (like a lead balloon) ; trial balloon .

Related Words

blimp

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Browse