blow
/bloʊ/verb, noun, interjection, adjective
blow is spelled B-L-O-W: 4 letters and one syllable. It appears 39 times per million words in written English, the 2,523rd most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a verb, blow means “To produce an air current” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in blow?
| Letters | 4: B-L-O-W |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 1 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 39 times per million words; the 2,523rd most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Rhymes with | |
| Same letters |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.
How common is blow?
Blow appears 39 times per million words in written English, the 2,523rd most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce blow?
- UK /bləʊ/
- /blaː/
- US /bloʊ/
Blow has one syllable (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-blow.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with blow?
The 12 most written words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as blow from its last stressed vowel (/oʊ/):
Spelled with the same letters in another order: bowl.
Computed by PlainSpell from the pronunciations in the English Wiktionary (dump of September 2, 2026): a rhyme shares every sound from the last stressed vowel to the end; ordered by written frequency (wordfreq 3.1).
Forms of blow
- blows present, singular, he/she/it, plural
- blowing participle, present
- blew past
- blown participle, past
- blower comparative
- more blow comparative
- blowest superlative
- most blow superlative
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does blow mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
verb
- 1
To produce an air current.
- 2
To propel by an air current (or, if under water, a water current), usually with the mouth.
Blow the dust off that book and open it up.
- 3
To be propelled by an air current.
The leaves blow through the streets in the fall.
- 4
To direct or move, usually of a person to a particular location.
- 5
To create or shape by blowing.
to blow bubbles
- 6
To force a current of air upon with the mouth, or by other means.
to blow the fire
- 7
To clear of contents by forcing air through.
to blow an egg
- 8
To cause to make sound by blowing (as a musical instrument).
Blow your horn! That car is about to hit us!
- 9
To blossom; to cause to bloom or blossom.
noun
- 1
A strong wind.
We’re having a bit of a blow this afternoon.
- 2
informalA chance to catch one's breath.
The players were able to get a blow during the last timeout.
- 3
USslangPowder cocaine.
- 4
UKslangCannabis.
- 5
slangHeroin.
- 6
informalvulgarA blowjob; fellatio.
His girlfriend gave him a blow.
- 7
An instance of using high-pressure air to empty water from the ballast tanks of a submarine, increasing the submarine's buoyancy and causing it to surface.
- 8
An instance of the act of striking or hitting.
A fabricator is used to direct a sharp blow to the surface of the stone.
- 9
A sudden or forcible act or effort; an assault.
- 10
A damaging occurrence.
A further blow to the group came in 1917 when Thomson died while canoeing in Algonquin Park.
- 11
AustraliaA cut made to a sheep's fleece by a shearer using hand-shears.
- 12
AustraliaAn outcrop of quartz from surrounding rock, thought to indicate mineral deposits below.
- 13
Synonym of button (“the punchy or suspenseful line of dialogue that concludes a scene”).
- 14
A state of flowering; a bloom.
roses in full blow
- 15
A display or mass of flowers; a yield.
- 16
A display of anything bright or brilliant.
interjection
- 1
Used to express displeasure or frustration.
Blow the expense!
adjective
- 1
Blue.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Blow in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | souffler , moucher , jouer (de) , pause , coup , floraison |
| German | blasen, pusten, wehen , wegblasen, fortblasen , Böe |
| Portuguese | soprar, assoprar, bufar , golpe , ventania , ser soprado |
| Spanish | soplar, bufar , soplido, sopladura , reventar , arruinar |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does blow come from?
From Middle English blowen, from Old English blāwan (“to blow, breathe, inflate, sound”), from Proto-West Germanic *blāan, from Proto-Germanic *blēaną (“to blow”) (compare German blähen), from Proto-Indo-European *bʰleh₁- (“to swell, blow up”) (compare Latin flō (“to blow”) and Old Armenian բեղուն (bełun, “fertile”)).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).