Blow \Blow\ (bl[=o]), v. i. [imp. {Blew} (bl[=u]); p. p. {Blown} (bl[=o]n); p. pr. & vb. n. {Blowing}.] [OE. blowen, AS. bl[=o]wan to blossom; akin to OS. bl[=o]jan, D. bloeijen, OHG. pluojan, MHG. bl["u]ejen, G. bl["u]hen, L. florere to flourish, OIr. blath blossom. Cf. {Blow} to puff, {Flourish}.] To flower; to blossom; to bloom.
How blows the citron grove. --Milton.
Blow \Blow\, v. i. [imp. {Blew} (bl[=u]); p. p. {Blown} (bl[=o]n); p. pr. & vb. n. {Blowing}.] [OE. blawen, blowen, AS. bl[=a]wan to blow, as wind; akin to OHG. pl[=a]jan, G. bl["a]hen, to blow up, swell, L. flare to blow, Gr. 'ekflai`nein to spout out, and to E. bladder, blast, inflate, etc., and perh. blow to bloom.] 1. To produce a current of air; to move, as air, esp. to move rapidly or with power; as, the wind blows.
Hark how it rains and blows ! --Walton.
2. To send forth a forcible current of air, as from the mouth or from a pair of bellows.
3. To breathe hard or quick; to pant; to puff.
Here is Mistress Page at the door, sweating and blowing. --Shak.
4. To sound on being blown into, as a trumpet.
There let the pealing organ blow. --Milton.
5. To spout water, etc., from the blowholes, as a whale.
6. To be carried or moved by the wind; as, the dust blows in from the street.
The grass blows from their graves to thy own. --M. Arnold.
7. To talk loudly; to boast; to storm. [Colloq.]
You blow behind my back, but dare not say anything to my face. --Bartlett.
8. To stop functioning due to a failure in an electrical circuit, especially on which breaks the circuit; sometimes used with out; -- used of light bulbs, electronic components, fuses; as, the dome light in the car blew out. [PJC]
9. To deflate by sudden loss of air; usually used with out; -- of inflatable tires. [PJC]
{To blow hot and cold} (a saying derived from a fable of [AE]sop's), to favor a thing at one time and treat it coldly at another; or to appear both to favor and to oppose.
{To blow off}, to let steam escape through a passage provided for the purpose; as, the engine or steamer is blowing off.
{To blow out}. (a) To be driven out by the expansive force of a gas or vapor; as, a steam cock or valve sometimes blows out. (b) To talk violently or abusively. [Low]
{To blow over}, to pass away without effect; to cease, or be dissipated; as, the storm and the clouds have blown over.
{To blow up}, to be torn to pieces and thrown into the air as by an explosion of powder or gas or the expansive force of steam; to burst; to explode; as, a powder mill or steam boiler blows up. ``The enemy's magazines blew up.'' --Tatler.
Blow \Blow\, v. t. To cause to blossom; to put forth (blossoms or flowers).
The odorous banks, that blow Flowers of more mingled hue. --Milton.
Blow \Blow\, n. (Bot.) A blossom; a flower; also, a state of blossoming; a mass of blossoms. ``Such a blow of tulips.'' --Tatler.
Blow \Blow\, n. [OE. blaw, blowe; cf. OHG. bliuwan, pliuwan, to beat, G. bl["a]uen, Goth. bliggwan.] 1. A forcible stroke with the hand, fist, or some instrument, as a rod, a club, an ax, or a sword.
Well struck ! there was blow for blow. --Shak.
2. A sudden or forcible act or effort; an assault.
A vigorous blow might win [Hanno's camp]. --T. Arnold.
3. The infliction of evil; a sudden calamity; something which produces mental, physical, or financial suffering or loss (esp. when sudden); a buffet.
A most poor man, made tame to fortune's blows. --Shak.
{At a blow}, suddenly; at one effort; by a single vigorous act. ``They lose a province at a blow.'' --Dryden.
{To come to blows}, to engage in combat; to fight; -- said of individuals, armies, and nations.
Syn: Stroke; knock; shock; misfortune.
Blow \Blow\, v. t. 1. To force a current of air upon with the mouth, or by other means; as, to blow the fire.
2. 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.
3. 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.
4. To clear of contents by forcing air through; as, to blow an egg; to blow one's nose.
5. To burst, shatter, or destroy by an explosion; -- usually with up, down, open, or similar adverb; as, to blow up a building.
6. 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.
7. To form by inflation; to swell by injecting air; as, to blow bubbles; to blow glass.
8. To inflate, as with pride; to puff up.
Look how imagination blows him. --Shak.
9. To put out of breath; to cause to blow from fatigue; as, to blow a horse. --Sir W. Scott.
10. To deposit eggs or larv[ae] upon, or in (meat, etc.).
To suffer The flesh fly blow my mouth. --Shak.
11. To perform an act of fellatio on; to stimulate another's penis with one's mouth; -- usually considered vulgar. [slang] [PJC]
12. to smoke (e. g. marijuana); to blow pot. [colloq.] [PJC]
13. to botch; to bungle; as, he blew his chance at a good job by showing up late for the interview. [colloq.] [PJC]
14. to leave; to depart from; as, to blow town. [slang] [PJC]
15. to squander; as, he blew his inheritance gambling. [colloq.] [PJC]
{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}. (a) To fill with air; to swell; as, to blow up a bladder or bubble. (b) 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. (c) To excite; as, to blow up a contention. (d) To burst, to raise into the air, or to scatter, by an explosion; as, to blow up a fort. (e) 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}. (a) To blast; to taint; to bring into discredit; to render stale, unsavory, or worthless. (b) 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.
Blow \Blow\, n. 1. A blowing, esp., a violent blowing of the wind; a gale; as, a heavy blow came on, and the ship put back to port.
2. The act of forcing air from the mouth, or through or from some instrument; as, to give a hard blow on a whistle or horn; to give the fire a blow with the bellows.
3. The spouting of a whale.
4. (Metal.) A single heat or operation of the Bessemer converter. --Raymond.
5. An egg, or a larva, deposited by a fly on or in flesh, or the act of depositing it. --Chapman.
The class system, that mysterious code the British like to believe is uniquely their own, has suffered a double blow in recent days.
But the Reserve Officers Association and others say that not using combat reserves is a fierce blow to the morale of these citizen soldiers who train with active units and are required by law to be ready to mobilize in times of crisis.
Integrated Resources Inc., a struggling financial concern, was dealt another blow when Whitehall Financial Group said it could not obtain financing to buy Integrated's core financial services businesses.
The 124-year-old firm suffered a major blow to its reputation when it became embroiled in the Ivan Boesky insider trading scandal. Kidder agreed in 1987 to pay a then-record $25.3 million settle civil charges with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
The journalist who spoke with the Iraqi leader in Baghdad on Saturday said Saddam told him "Tel Aviv would receive the first blow in the case of a gulf war," whether or not Israel joined any multinational strike against Iraq.
Another mummy had a fractured right forearm, "perhaps from warding off a blow," Dr. Marx speculates.
The scandal was a blow for Chancellor Helmut Kohl and his coalition government.
The press coverage has been very hurtful: it's a bit like taking a blow in the stomach because of the way it's been conducted, certainly from the other side.
In fact, the feeling often is like a boxing match, with first one contender and then the other striking a blow for his or her life style or point of view while the crowd applauds.
A crowd police estimated at more than 20,000 gathered nearby for a later rally protesting a blow by the national party leadership to the effort by Slobodan Milosevic, Communist Party chief of the Serbian republic, to gain more control over Kosovo.
Jackson's endorsement seemed like the final blow.
Democrats applauded the action as a blow against South Africa's apartheid system of forced racial separation, but said they hoped the measure would enjoy stronger Republican support when it is put to a vote in the full Senate.
"It was scary _ you never really knew who you were up against," said the 23-year-old father of three. "Every now and then someone would wave and blow a kiss.
The discounts are a blow to expansion plans such as those at Delta, which would acquire routes to London from Detroit and Miami if its proposed $515 million purchase of certain Pan Am Corp. assets is successful.
The referee stopped that one after one knockdown because it was a clean head blow, and amateur rules say one of those is enough.
The decision is a blow to the Bush administration's heavily advertised assault on restrictive trade practices by foreign companies and governments.
"It's a major blow.
Police said a blow with a blunt instrument fractured Staiasz' skull and caused his death.
Supernovas are dying stars that blow up and eject matter in all directions.
But rural lawmakers called the bill another blow to the declining tobacco industry.
AFFIRMATIVE ACTION The court, dealing a serious blow to some forms of affirmative action, today struck down a Richmond, Va., program aimed at helping construction industry businesses owned by minorities.
Cumbria County Council called the job cuts 'a major blow'.
The exchange also softened the blow for Richard A. Grasso, who had been actively lobbying to succeed Mr. Phelan.
Chop 'em, burn 'em or plow them under, but get rid of them before the next westerly wind starts to blow.
Failure to complete the Uruguay Round would be a further serious blow to confidence.
The GAO probe was the third blow sustained by the facility this week.
Other Continental banks, seeking to develop their corporate finance and international equity businesses, may feel under pressure to follow suit. The decision is undoubtedly a blow to Frankfurt.
But there is no doubt that the fire is seen by the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead as another blow to tourism on which the area is heavily dependent, and which has been battered by recession.
This is but the latest blow to the Soviet leader's efforts to unify the Communist Party before the June 28 party conference, where he hopes to push through far-reaching political and legal reforms.
The judge's order for limited discovery dealt a blow to the defendants, who had requested access to all the evidence gathered by the states during their two-year investigation.