popped

verb

past tense of pop
1
as in exploded
to break open or into pieces usually because of internal pressure a balloon popped suddenly and startled us all

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in snapped
to break suddenly with an explosive sound the last strand popped, causing the chandelier to drop to the floor with a great crash

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3
as in shattered
to cause to break open or into pieces by or as if by an explosive popping popcorn over a campfire

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
4
as in drilled
to strike with a missile from a gun went into the woods hoping to pop the rabbit that was eating our vegetables

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of popped Many of these 13 tracks have popped up as demos in Jensen’s live shows or NTS sets, cooking down to their essence in plain sight. — Hattie Lindert, Pitchfork, 23 Oct. 2026 Omnicom — Shares popped almost 2% after the marketing and sales company posted third-quarter earnings that exceeded expectations. — Darla Mercado, Cfp®, CNBC, 22 Oct. 2026 Bob the Drag Queen and Monét X Change bantered in red carpet interviews while country star Megan Moroney popped into the party, grabbing a pic with UTA CEO David Kramer. — Kirsten Chuba, HollywoodReporter, 22 Oct. 2026 Well, that Attersee dress—last April or something, the alert popped up. — Marisa Meltzer, Vanity Fair, 21 Oct. 2026 The Pyramid House, which popped back up on the market in September, was designed by architect Julio Kaufman in 1960. — Abby Montanez, Robb Report, 21 Oct. 2026 Students had a surprise visitor — Kendall Jenner, who popped in to their classroom, looking way collegiate in an all-white outfit and sweater around her neck. — Madeleine Marr, Miami Herald, 20 Oct. 2026 Delegate Vernon Criss, the committee’s chairperson, popped outside his office, then promptly walked back in. — Henry Culvyhouse, ProPublica, 19 Oct. 2026 Experience with Schottenheimer and Parker The relationship with Pettine extends far beyond the last few weeks — or even May when Pettine popped through the facility to watch OTA practices. — Nick Harris, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 16 Oct. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for popped
  1. exploded
  2. snapped
  3. shattered
  4. drilled
  5. detonated
  6. smashed
  7. plugged
  8. blew
Verb
  • Less than two weeks after the mines exploded, the North fired an intermediate-range ballistic missile more than 700 kilometers.
    — Dan Blumenthal, Washington Post, 27 Oct. 2026
  • Sudan’s war began in April 2023, when simmering tensions between the military and the RSF exploded into open fighting in Khartoum and spread across the country.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 27 Oct. 2026
Definition of exploded
Verb
  • Bijan Robinson rushed for 63 yards as the Falcons snapped a two-game skid.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 25 Oct. 2026
  • Tyson Foerster also scored a goal and Michkov added a second goal in the third period, but Philadelphia never could draw back even, and had its three-game winning streak snapped.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 24 Oct. 2026
Definition of snapped
Verb
  • On Wednesday night, northern and central parts of the state saw hail the size of golf balls that pummeled people’s roofs, shattered windows and dented cars, along with damaging wind gusts.
    — Wufei Yu, Los Angeles Times, 22 Oct. 2026
  • Hail pummeled people's roofs, shattered windows and dented cars.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 21 Oct. 2026
Definition of shattered
Verb
  • Brown drilled a corner 3 with one second remaining, forcing overtime at 117.
    — C.J. Holmes, New York Daily News, 27 Oct. 2026
  • The bigger habit, though, is the one her mother drilled in long before SPF was mainstream.
    — Samantha Agate, Miami Herald, 27 Oct. 2026
Definition of drilled
Verb
  • An operation in Kenscoff In the mists of the steep hills that ring southern Port-au-Prince, CNN saw one Task Force operation where helicopters manned by foreign contractors assaulted gang positions, and drones detonated amid the clatter of gunfire.
    — Nick Paton Walsh, CNN Money, 17 Oct. 2026
  • The police response has drawn criticism following an incident last week in which a 15-year-old boy lost his hand and part of his lower arm after picking up a police dispersal grenade that detonated during a demonstration in Lens.
    — Brittany Miller, FOXNews.com, 13 Oct. 2026
Definition of detonated
Verb
  • But with a last throw of the dice, Tino Martinez smashed a two-run homer to level the contest, sending the game to extra innings and the World Series into its first November action.
    — Don Riddell, CNN Money, 26 Oct. 2026
  • Shattered glass littered sidewalks after rioters smashed and looted thousands of shops, torched cars and buildings, and attacked police, who fired tear gas and water cannons.
    — The Week US, TheWeek, 26 Oct. 2026
Definition of smashed
Verb
  • Each console was tested in the device's performance mode while plugged directly into power, with the only difference being the resolution.
    — Zackery Cuevas, PC Magazine, 15 Oct. 2026
  • The roommate then plugged the camera in and saw several videos of Long inside the bedroom testing out the device, according to the report.
    — David Goodhue, Miami Herald, 30 Sep. 2026
Definition of plugged
Verb
  • The stocks are already down over 30% each in October as credit investors blew their yields out to distressed levels, doubting their business model of using aggressive levels of debt to build data centers.
    — Leonie Kidd, CNBC, 26 Oct. 2026
  • After losing consecutive non-road games by three points both times, on Saturday night UT blew a 24-3 halftime lead to turn it a fourth-quarter tie.
    — Mac Engel October 25, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 25 Oct. 2026
Definition of blew

Browse Nearby Words

pop off
popped
popped (in)
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Cite this Entry

“Popped.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/popped. Accessed 28 Oct. 2026.

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