bolt

Use Bolt in a sentence

noun

a movable bar or rod that when slid into a socket fastens a door, gate, etc.

the part of a lock that is shot from and drawn back into the case, as by the action of the key.

any of several types of strong fastening rods, pins, or screws, usually threaded to receive a nut.

a sudden dash, run, flight, or escape.

a sudden desertion from a meeting, political party, social movement, etc.

a length of woven goods, especially as it comes on a roll from the loom.

a roll of wallpaper.

Bookbinding. the three edges of a folded sheet that must be cut so that the leaves can be opened.

a rod, bar, or plate that closes the breech of a breechloading rifle, especially a sliding rod or bar that shoves a cartridge into the firing chamber as it closes the breech.

10.

a jet of water, molten glass, etc.

11.

an arrow, especially a short, heavy one for a crossbow.

12.

a shaft of lightning; thunderbolt.

13.

a length of timber to be cut into smaller pieces.

14.

a slice from a log, as a short, round piece of wood used for a chopping block.

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verb (used with object)

15.

to fasten with or as with a bolt.

16.

to discontinue support of or participation in; break with: to bolt a political party.

17.

to shoot or discharge (a missile), as from a crossbow or catapult.

18.

to utter hastily; say impulsively; blurt out.

19.

to swallow (one's food or drink) hurriedly: She bolted her breakfast and ran to school.

20.

to make (cloth, wallpaper, etc.) into bolts.

21.

Fox Hunting. (of hounds) to force (a fox) into the open.

00:10

Bolt is one of our favorite verbs.

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to chew (food) slowly and thoroughly.

to flee; abscond:

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verb (used without object)

22.

to make a sudden, swift dash, run, flight, or escape; spring away suddenly: The rabbit bolted into its burrow.

23.

to break away, as from one's political party.

24.

to eat hurriedly or without chewing.

25.

Horticulture. to produce flowers or seeds prematurely.

adverb

26.

Archaic. with sudden meeting or collision; suddenly.

Idioms

27.

bolt from the blue, a sudden and entirely unforeseen event: His decision to leave college was a bolt from the blue for his parents. Also, bolt out of the blue.

28.

bolt upright, stiffly upright; rigidly straight: The explosive sound caused him to sit bolt upright in his chair.

29.

shoot one's bolt, Informal. to make an exhaustive effort or expenditure: The lawyer shot his bolt the first day of the trial and had little to say thereafter.

Origin:
before 1000; Middle English (noun, v., and adv.), Old English (noun), cognate with Dutch bout, German Bolz

Related forms

bolt·er, noun

bolt·less, adjective

bolt·like, adjective

Synonyms
22. dash, rush, run, fly, speed, scoot, flee, bound.

Dictionary.com Unabridged

verb (used with object)

to sift through a cloth or sieve.

to examine or search into, as if by sifting.

Origin:
1150–1200; Middle English bulten < Old French bul(e)ter, metathetic variant of *buteler < Germanic; compare Middle High German biuteln to sift, derivative of biutel, Old High German būtil bag, whence German Beutel

Related forms

bolt·er, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Link To bolt

Collins

World English Dictionary

bolt¹ (bəʊlt)

—n
1.	a bar that can be slid into a socket to lock a door, gate, etc
2.	a bar or rod that forms part of a locking mechanism and is moved by a key or a knob
3.	a metal rod or pin that has a head at one end and a screw thread at the other to take a nut
4.	a sliding bar in a breech-loading firearm that ejects the empty cartridge, replaces it with a new one, and closes the breech
5.	a flash of lightning
6.	a sudden start or movement, esp in order to escape: they made a bolt for the door
7.	(US) a sudden desertion, esp from a political party
8.	a roll of something, such as cloth, wallpaper, etc
9.	an arrow, esp for a crossbow
10.	printing a folded edge on a sheet of paper that is removed when cutting to size
11.	mechanical engineering short for expansion bolt
12.	a bolt from the blue a sudden, unexpected, and usually unwelcome event
13.	shoot one's bolt to exhaust one's effort: the runner had shot his bolt

—vb
14.	(tr) to secure or lock with or as with a bolt or bolts: bolt your doors
15.	(tr) to eat hurriedly: don't bolt your food
16.	(intr; usually foll by from or out) to move or jump suddenly: he bolted from the chair
17.	(intr) (esp of a horse) to start hurriedly and run away without warning
18.	(tr) to roll or make (cloth, wallpaper, etc) into bolts
19.	(US) to desert (a political party, etc)
20.	(intr) (of cultivated plants) to produce flowers and seeds prematurely
21.	(tr) to cause (a wild animal) to leave its lair; start: terriers were used for bolting rats

—*adv*
22.	stiffly, firmly, or rigidly (archaic except in the phrase bolt upright)

[Old English bolt arrow; related to Old High German bolz bolt for a crossbow]

bolt or boult² (bəʊlt)

—vb
1.	to pass (flour, a powder, etc) through a sieve
2.	to examine and separate

[C13: from Old French bulter, probably of Germanic origin; compare Old High German būtil bag]

boult or boult²

—vb

[C13: from Old French bulter, probably of Germanic origin; compare Old High German būtil bag]

'bolter or boult²

—n

'boulter or boult²

—n

Bolt (bəʊlt)

—n
1.	Robert (Oxton). 1924--95, British playwright. His plays include A Man for All Seasons (1960) and he also wrote a number of screenplays
2.	Usain (juːˈseɪn). born 1986, Jamaican athlete: winner of the 100 metres and the 200 metres in the 2008 Olympic Games, setting world records at both distances

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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Etymonline

Word Origin & History

bolt

O.E. bolt "short, stout arrow with a heavy head;" also "crossbow for throwing bolts," from P.Gmc. *bultas (cf. O.N. bolti, Dan. bolt, Du. bout, Ger. Bolzen), perhaps from PIE base *bheld- "to knock, strike" (cf. Lith. beldu "I knock," baldas "pole for striking"). Applied since M.E. to other short metal

rods (especially those with knobbed ends). From the notion of an arrow's flight comes the lightning bolt (1530s). A bolt of canvas (c.1400) was so called for its shape. Adverbial phrase bolt upright is from late 14c.

bolt

from bolt (n.) in its various senses; from a crossbow arrow's quick flight comes the meaning "to spring, to make a quick start" (early 13c.). Via the notion of runaway horses, this came to mean "to leave suddenly" (early 19c.). Meaning "to gulp down food" is from 1794. The

meaning "to secure by means of a bolt" is from 1580s.

Slang Dictionary

bolt definition

in.
to leave; to go away. (Not necessarily fast.) : Time to go, man. Let's bolt.

Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions by Richard A. Spears.Fourth Edition.
Copyright 2007. Published by McGraw Hill.
Cite This Source

American Heritage

Idioms & Phrases

bolt

In addition to the idioms beginning with bolt, also see nuts and bolts; shoot one's bolt.