explosion
/ɛkˈsploʊ.ʒən/noun
explosion is spelled E-X-P-L-O-S-I-O-N: 9 letters and 3 syllables. It appears 17 times per million words in written English, the 4,934th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, explosion means “A violent release of energy (sometimes mechanical, nuclear, or chemical); an act or instance of exploding” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of explosion is explosions.
How many letters and syllables are in explosion?
| Letters | 9: E-X-P-L-O-S-I-O-N |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 3 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 17 times per million words; the 4,934th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Rhymes with |
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 explosion?
Explosion appears 17 times per million words in written English, the 4,934th 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 explosion?
- UK /ɪkˈspləʊ.ʒən/
- US /ɛkˈsploʊ.ʒən/
- US /ɪkˈsploʊ.ʒən/
Explosion has 3 syllables (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-explosion.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with explosion?
2 words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as explosion from its last stressed vowel (/oʊʒən/):
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 explosion
- explosions plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does explosion mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
A violent release of energy (sometimes mechanical, nuclear, or chemical); an act or instance of exploding.
- 2
The sound of an explosion.
- 3
A sudden, uncontrolled or rapid increase, expansion, or bursting out.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Explosion in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense violent release of energy:
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 explosion come from?
From French explosion, from Latin explōsiōnis, genitive form of explōsio, from explōdo (“to drive out by clapping”), from ex- and plōdo (“to clap or strike”). For more information see explode.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).