BURSTS Synonyms: 109 Similar and Opposite Words

bursts 1 of 2

verb

present tense third-person singular of burst

as in explodes

to break open or into pieces usually because of internal pressure the turnover's crust burst when the filling expanded

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Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in shatters

to cause to break open or into pieces by or as if by an explosive finally burst the piñata open with one mighty swing of the bat

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in buzzes

to be copiously supplied a young singer/dancer who seems to be bursting with energy and talent

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bursts

2 of 2

noun

plural of burst

as in flurries

a sudden and usually temporary growth of activity a sudden burst of industriousness whenever the boss appeared

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in explosions

a sudden intense expression of strong feeling a burst of anger that startled the other members on the panel

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as in eruptions

the act or an instance of exploding one burst after another could be heard in the distance

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

implosions

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 bursts

Verb

In these moments, the actor bursts through his roles as the Spider does through Reilly, unleashing the Grand Guignol excess that is Nicolas Cage. — Harmon Siegel, Artforum, 1 Oct. 2026 Things quickly take a terrifying turn during surgery when a scorpion tail suddenly bursts through Perry’s back, attacking one of the surgeons mid-operation. — Lily Brown, PEOPLE, 26 June 2026 Haaland bursts our bubble almost immediately by scoring in the opening five minutes, and Burnley miss a few good first-half chances, with striker Zian Flemming particularly culpable. — Nnamdi Onyeagwara, New York Times, 23 Apr. 2026 The 60-year immigration bubble finally bursts. — FOXNews.com, 29 Jan. 2026 Once a cushioned conduit to the other side, the casket now bursts with the wisdom of a life lived outside the box. — Elizabeth Hernandez, Denver Post, 16 Oct. 2025 Later, as the film plays, the crowd bursts intermittently into laughter, cracking up at the clown-car quality of everyone piling into the van for the first time. — Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 14 Oct. 2025 Sedona Sedona is another popular fall break destination for many reasons, least of all being Oak Creek Canyon, which bursts with color during the autumn months. — Laura Daniella Sepulveda, AZCentral.com, 19 Sep. 2025 The movie is a tour de force In IMAX, the format’s large screen and huge sound a perfect partner for the purple one’s charisma, which positively bursts off the screen. — Benny Har-Even, Forbes.com, 29 Aug. 2025

Noun

Cue the lovelorn weeping in the rain set to composer Roger Goula’s supple string score, and before us, a sweeping love epic bursts alive with real pain. — Ryan Lattanzio, IndieWire, 13 Oct. 2026 The machine generated about a dozen or so graphs, marked by human figures and bursts of colors that denoted energy fields, broken down by organ—and even tooth. — Jessica Sulima, Condé Nast Traveler, 10 Oct. 2026 This raises the likelihood for flash flooding in desert areas, which cannot rapidly absorb intense bursts of rainfall. — Andrew Freedman, CNN Money, 10 Oct. 2026 Here again, accounts differ, although an estimated 20 rounds were fired during the test, either at once or in a series of bursts. — Micah Hanks, Space.com, 9 Oct. 2026 But this record-setting FRB still significantly pushes back the baseline for when these bursts can occur in cosmic history. — Adam Kovac, Scientific American, 8 Oct. 2026 The latter comes in handy when quick, powerful bursts of energy are required. — New Atlas, 8 Oct. 2026 Nobody is more confident working with the Kings than Colter, whose swagger and comfort with bursts of goofiness are well-deployed, albeit with less emotional range in the early-going. — Daniel Fienberg, HollywoodReporter, 6 Oct. 2026 Striking polka dahlias with cream petals edged in cranberry and fluffy yellow centers brought bursts of color to the ballroom. — Paul Chi, Vogue, 4 Oct. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for bursts

Verb

When the gang war that’s been building all along between the Greasers and the Socs finally explodes in the second act, the violence is conveyed through movement, lighting, sound and just all around scenic brilliance.

— Theater Critic, Los Angeles Times, 5 Oct. 2026
Continue reading … ‘NEVER-ENDING’ — Huge number of noncitizens found on voter rolls as Mike Lee explodes on 'honor system'.

— , FOXNews.com, 25 Sep. 2026

Definition of explodes

Verb

Barry Bonds wraps up his record-breaking season with his 73rd homer and shatters the slugging percentage record that Babe Ruth had owned for 81 years.

— Senior Editor, Los Angeles Times, 7 Oct. 2026
When a severe heatwave shatters her family’s fragile routine and exposes her father’s dementia, Anna’s world is thrown into uncertainty.

— Jill Goldsmith, Deadline, 25 Sep. 2026

Definition of shatters

Verb

Best Time To Visit As a lake town, Coeur d’Alene buzzes with activity in the summer months, but fall is arguably its best season.

— Lydia Mansel, Travel + Leisure, 6 Oct. 2026
Elimar, the ground floor restaurant, buzzes at breakfast with a spectacular spread including giant wheels of parmesan and sides of prosciutto, fruit, egg and pancake stations, and a gluten-free section.

— Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 8 Sep. 2026

Definition of buzzes

Noun

The explosions ruptured the Nord Stream 1 pipeline, which was Russia's main natural gas supply route to Germany until Moscow cut off supplies in August 2022.

— Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 15 Oct. 2026
Russia’s ballistic missiles can reach Kyiv in just minutes, leaving little time to respond; in some recent attacks, air raid sirens sounded at the same time as the first explosions.

— Jessie Yeung, CNN Money, 14 Oct. 2026

Definition of explosions

Noun

Xu Fu and Ma Junsheng also play surrogate dads to Seif, whose increasingly violent eruptions threaten to change the course of his life more than once.

— Beatrice Loayza, Variety, 13 Oct. 2026
As of last month, 52 additional fountain eruptions had occurred, the most violent of which spewed lava over 400 meters into the air.

— John Timmer, ArsTechnica, 9 Oct. 2026

Definition of eruptions

Verb

Forever Home FilmNation Entertainment, the Mediapro Studio A corpse beneath an idyllic home detonates this domestic thriller adapted from Graham Norton’s bestseller.

— Emiliano de Pablos, Variety, 11 Oct. 2026
The missile, called a PrSM—for precision-strike missile—detonates midair and spreads thousands of small tungsten fragments in all directions.

— Robin Wright, New Yorker, 26 Sep. 2026

Definition of detonates

Verb

The company essentially smashes the cooler into a long, slim form low enough to slide under its Box beds while one or two people snore cozily away on top.

— New Atlas, New Atlas, 10 Oct. 2026
His acumen for promotion, particularly in international markets, helped the commercial success of box office smashes such as Saturday Night Fever and Raiders of the Lost Ark.

— Greg Evans, Deadline, 7 Oct. 2026