1
as in exploding
to break open or into pieces usually because of internal pressure
a balloon popped suddenly and startled us all
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in snapping
to break suddenly with an explosive sound
the last strand popped, causing the chandelier to drop to the floor with a great crash
Synonyms & Similar Words
3
as in shattering
to cause to break open or into pieces by or as if by an explosive
popping popcorn over a campfire
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
4
as in shooting
to strike with a missile from a gun
went into the woods hoping to pop the rabbit that was eating our vegetables
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
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Recent Examples of popping
Death Cafes are popping up in churches, coffee shops and even historic cemeteries across the country.
—
Jen Christensen, CNN Money, 1 May 2026
That podium is being replicated for one of the brand’s activations at Fontainebleau Miami Beach, one of the venues where the Champagne brand is also popping up, in addition to the Miami Beach Edition and Seaspice.
—James Manso, Footwear News, 1 May 2026
Paul Villa and his wife, Kristen, were concerned about too many massage parlors popping up in the city of about 87,000, nestled against the hills between the 605 Freeway and the Orange County border.
—Los Angeles Times, 1 May 2026
In fact, there's evidence of this recipe popping up in print as early as 1895.
—Kaitlyn Yarborough, Southern Living, 30 Apr. 2026
With two huge movies out this year, Tom Holland will be popping up in many places across the globe in 2026.
—Chris Gardner, HollywoodReporter, 30 Apr. 2026
His leadership of Amazon’s cloud business has coincided with the AI boom and the remarkable scramble among cloud providers, including Microsoft, Google, and Oracle, to spend eye-popping sums building data centers and other AI infrastructure.
—Alexei Oreskovic, Fortune, 29 Apr. 2026
When the movement had quieted a bit, guests began popping up like meerkats to try and catch a glimpse of what happened.
—Kyler Alvord, PEOPLE, 29 Apr. 2026
Allen had an eye-popping 13 touchdown receptions last season at Cincinnati after playing two seasons at Louisiana Tech and one at Texas A&M.
—Zac Jackson, New York Times, 25 Apr. 2026
Jen Christensen, CNN Money, 1 May 2026
That podium is being replicated for one of the brand’s activations at Fontainebleau Miami Beach, one of the venues where the Champagne brand is also popping up, in addition to the Miami Beach Edition and Seaspice.
—James Manso, Footwear News, 1 May 2026
Paul Villa and his wife, Kristen, were concerned about too many massage parlors popping up in the city of about 87,000, nestled against the hills between the 605 Freeway and the Orange County border.
—Los Angeles Times, 1 May 2026
In fact, there's evidence of this recipe popping up in print as early as 1895.
—Kaitlyn Yarborough, Southern Living, 30 Apr. 2026
With two huge movies out this year, Tom Holland will be popping up in many places across the globe in 2026.
—Chris Gardner, HollywoodReporter, 30 Apr. 2026
His leadership of Amazon’s cloud business has coincided with the AI boom and the remarkable scramble among cloud providers, including Microsoft, Google, and Oracle, to spend eye-popping sums building data centers and other AI infrastructure.
—Alexei Oreskovic, Fortune, 29 Apr. 2026
When the movement had quieted a bit, guests began popping up like meerkats to try and catch a glimpse of what happened.
—Kyler Alvord, PEOPLE, 29 Apr. 2026
Allen had an eye-popping 13 touchdown receptions last season at Cincinnati after playing two seasons at Louisiana Tech and one at Texas A&M.
—Zac Jackson, New York Times, 25 Apr. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for popping
Verb
-
Both Monahon and Carroll are writing about transformation of the paradigm-exploding kind.—
Theater Critic,
Los Angeles Times,
22 Apr. 2026
-
That is, until the union starts not-so-quietly exploding during a vicious screaming match at their home following a fundraising event.—
David Fear,
Rolling Stone,
17 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Slender claws are prone to snapping.—
Mrigakshi Dixit,
Interesting Engineering,
28 Apr. 2026
-
But the enthusiasm was motivating, from fans snapping photos of Hathaway and Meryl Streep on the New York streets, to support from Anna Wintour.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
27 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
In a race for the ages, Sabastian Sawe of Kenya won the London Marathon in 1 hour, 59 minutes and 30 seconds on Sunday, shattering the previous men’s world record by an astonishing 65 seconds.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
26 Apr. 2026
-
The Kenyan runner won the London Marathon in 1 hour, 59 minutes and 30 seconds, shattering the previous men’s world record by 65 seconds.—
Ryan Gaydos,
FOXNews.com,
26 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Also, the Spurs are due for shooting regression from deep, whereas the Blazers have gotten unlucky from 3-point range.—
Geoff Clark OutKick,
FOXNews.com,
28 Apr. 2026
-
Cade Cunningham is shooting under 43% from the field and has a whopping 27 turnovers through four games.—
Tim Rohan,
NBC news,
28 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Two Massachusetts men have pleaded guilty to breaking into Harvard Medical School and detonating fireworks last Halloween night, a crime that caught the eye of FBI Director Kash Patel.—
Lance Reynolds,
Boston Herald,
24 Apr. 2026
-
And some advanced mines have counters that will let a certain number of ships pass before detonating.—
Brad Lendon,
CNN Money,
13 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
From the buzz of the post position draw to the first look at the morning-line odds, Derby week always feels like the sport cracking open a fresh bottle of adrenaline.—
Geoff Clark OutKick,
FOXNews.com,
25 Apr. 2026
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The teen was looking forward to his 17th birthday on July 1, his mom said, her voice cracking from a night of crying.—
Rebecca White,
New York Daily News,
25 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
But as anyone who’s dropped a mug knows, ceramics are also brittle and prone to smashing.—
Caitlin Kennedy,
Scientific American,
25 Apr. 2026
-
Police officers arrived at her Hollywood Hills home in Los Angeles and learned that the attackers had left the woman inside after allegedly smashing her jaw and choking her.—
Francie Ebert,
NBC news,
25 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Instead of drilling blindly, mission planners could target locations where ice lies closest to the surface, providing a clearer picture of its depth and distribution.—
Samantha Mathewson,
Space.com,
1 May 2026
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Open the new unit and mount it on the wall by drilling holes for the screws and anchors included in the package.—
Tribune Content Agency,
Baltimore Sun,
27 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Popping.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/popping. Accessed 3 May. 2026.
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