The Collaborative International Dictionary
Blow \Blow\, v. t.
To force a current of air upon with the mouth, or by other means; as, to blow the fire.
-
To drive by a current air; to impel; as, the tempest blew the ship ashore.
Off at sea northeast winds blow Sabean odors from the spicy shore.
--Milton. -
To cause air to pass through by the action of the mouth, or otherwise; to cause to sound, as a wind instrument; as, to blow a trumpet; to blow an organ; to blow a horn.
Hath she no husband That will take pains to blow a horn before her?
--Shak.Boy, blow the pipe until the bubble rise, Then cast it off to float upon the skies.
--Parnell. To clear of contents by forcing air through; as, to blow an egg; to blow one's nose.
To burst, shatter, or destroy by an explosion; -- usually with up, down, open, or similar adverb; as, to blow up a building.
-
To spread by report; to publish; to disclose; to reveal, intentionally or inadvertently; as, to blow an agent's cover.
Through the court his courtesy was blown.
--Dryden.His language does his knowledge blow.
--Whiting. To form by inflation; to swell by injecting air; as, to blow bubbles; to blow glass.
-
To inflate, as with pride; to puff up.
Look how imagination blows him.
--Shak. To put out of breath; to cause to blow from fatigue; as, to blow a horse.
--Sir W. Scott.-
To deposit eggs or larv[ae] upon, or in (meat, etc.).
To suffer The flesh fly blow my mouth.
--Shak. To perform an act of fellatio on; to stimulate another's penis with one's mouth; -- usually considered vulgar.
to smoke (e. g. marijuana); to blow pot. [colloq.]
to botch; to bungle; as, he blew his chance at a good job by showing up late for the interview. [colloq.]
to leave; to depart from; as, to blow town. [slang]
-
to squander; as, he blew his inheritance gambling. To blow great guns, to blow furiously and with roaring blasts; -- said of the wind at sea or along the coast. To blow off, to empty (a boiler) of water through the blow-off pipe, while under steam pressure; also, to eject (steam, water, sediment, etc.) from a boiler. To blow one's own trumpet, to vaunt one's own exploits, or sound one's own praises. To blow out, to extinguish by a current of air, as a candle. To blow up.
To fill with air; to swell; as, to blow up a bladder or bubble.
To inflate, as with pride, self-conceit, etc.; to puff up; as, to blow one up with flattery. ``Blown up with high conceits engendering pride.''
--Milton.To excite; as, to blow up a contention.
To burst, to raise into the air, or to scatter, by an explosion; as, to blow up a fort.
-
To scold violently; as, to blow up a person for some offense. [Colloq.] I have blown him up well -- nobody can say I wink at what he does. --G. Eliot. To blow upon.
To blast; to taint; to bring into discredit; to render stale, unsavory, or worthless.
-
To inform against. [Colloq.]
How far the very custom of hearing anything spouted withers and blows upon a fine passage, may be seen in those speeches from [Shakespeare's] Henry V. which are current in the mouths of schoolboys.
--C. Lamb.A lady's maid whose character had been blown upon.
--Macaulay.