implosion

C2+ Topic:Abstract Ideas

US /ɪmˈploʊʒən/ UK /ɪmˈpləʊʒən/ See IPA manual

Meanings

1

noun
a violent collapse inward; a sudden internal failure

The building's controlled implosion took only seconds.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 noun · a violent collapse inward;... collapse cave-in breakdown disintegration

Opposites

explosion expansion

Word family

Related forms implode explosion explode

Etymology

Coined from implode (modeled on explosion / explode) with in- ('inward'), ultimately tracing to Latin plaudere ('to clap').

plaudere Latin

View etymology graph ->

Topics

Abstract Ideas Word Formation & Derivatives

External links

# implosion

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C2+
**Part of speech:** noun
**IPA (US):** /ɪmˈploʊʒən/
**IPA (UK):** /ɪmˈpləʊʒən/

## Meanings
1. a violent collapse inward; a sudden internal failure

## Examples
- The building's controlled implosion took only seconds.

## Synonyms
- collapse
- cave-in
- breakdown
- disintegration

## Antonyms
- explosion
- expansion

## Related Forms
- implode
- explosion
- explode

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: plaudere

## Etymology
Coined from implode (modeled on explosion / explode) with in- ('inward'), ultimately tracing to Latin plaudere ('to clap').

## AI Etymology
implosion has the recorded history: Coined from implode (modeled on explosion / explode) with in- ('inward'), ultimately tracing to Latin plaudere ('to clap'). The path is chiefly one of transmission: the word passes through the named languages and forms, with each stage preserving part of the modern shape. In present English, the noun sense is "a violent collapse inward; a sudden internal failure", so the historical development ends in a clearly identifiable modern dictionary use. The same base also appears in related forms such as implode, explosion, and explode. Its semantic neighborhood includes collapse, cave-in, breakdown, and disintegration, which helps locate the modern sense without adding a separate etymological claim. The named historical forms include Latin plaudere.

## Topics
- Abstract Ideas
- Word Formation & Derivatives

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