blower
/'blouə/
Học thuậtThân thiện
Definition
- Noun:
- A device that produces a current of air: A machine, often a fan run by an electric motor, used to move air or gas.
- A large aquatic mammal: (Informal, chiefly British) A term for a whale, dolphin, porpoise, or similar cetacean.
- A person who blows: Someone who operates a device that requires blowing, such as a glassblower.
Usage and Examples
- As a device:
- We used a leaf blower to clear the driveway.
- The furnace is equipped with a powerful blower.
- As an aquatic mammal (informal):
- We spotted a blower off the coast; it was a humpback whale.
- As a person:
- He is a master blower of fine crystal glassware.
Advanced Usage
- On the blower: (British slang) On the telephone.
- He's been on the blower to head office all morning.
- Whistle-blower: While a compound word, it relates to the core idea of "blowing" a whistle to expose wrongdoing. It is not a direct synonym for "blower" itself.
Variants and Related Words
- Glassblower (n): A person who shapes molten glass by blowing air into it through a tube.
- Leaf blower (n): A portable garden tool that uses an air current to move leaves.
- Snow blower (n): A machine that clears snow by blowing it to the side.
- Blow (v): The root verb meaning to expel air.
Synonyms
- Fan: A device with rotating blades that creates an air current.
- Ventilator: A device that circulates fresh air.
- Cetacean: (For the biological meaning) The formal term for whales, dolphins, etc.
Phrasal Verbs / Related Phrases
- Blow out: To extinguish by blowing or, for a device, to fail.
- The strong wind will blow out the candles. (This uses the root verb "blow," not the noun "blower").
- Blow up: To inflate or explode.
- He used a pump to blow up the balloons. (This uses the root verb "blow," not the noun "blower").
Related Idioms
- A four-pipe blower: (Nautical slang, archaic) A whale.
- Ring the blower: (Slang) To make a telephone call.
Noun
- large aquatic carnivorous mammal with fin-like forelimbs no hind limbs, including: whales; dolphins; porpoises; narwhals
- a fan run by an electric motor
- a device that produces a current of air