blow out

blow out idiom
  1. Extinguish, especially a flame. For example, The wind blew out the candles very quickly. [1300s]
  2. Lose force or cease entirely, as in The storm will soon blow itself out and move out to sea. Also see blow over.
  3. Burst or rupture suddenly, as in This tire is about to blow out. This usage alludes to the escape of air under pressure. [Early 1900s]
  4. Also, blow out of the water. Defeat decisively, as in With a great new product and excellent publicity, we could blow the competition out of the water. This term originally was used in mid-19th-century naval warfare, where it meant to blast or shoot another vessel to pieces. It later was transferred to athletic and other kinds of defeat. [Slang; mid-1900s]

The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer. Copyright © 2003, 1997 by The Christine Ammer 1992 Trust. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Comments
Improve this definition.
Do you have more to add? Share your linguistic knowledge or observation.
/Register to save your comments.