bolt

¹

[ bohlt ]

noun

1. a movable bar or rod that when slid into a socket fastens a door, gate, etc.
2. the part of a lock that is shot from and drawn back into the case, as by the action of the key.
3. any of several types of strong fastening rods, pins, or screws, usually threaded to receive a nut.
4. a sudden dash, run, flight, or escape.
5. a sudden desertion from a meeting, political party, social movement, etc.
6. a length of woven goods, especially as it comes on a roll from the loom.
7. a roll of wallpaper.
8. Bookbinding. the three edges of a folded sheet that must be cut so that the leaves can be opened.
9. a rod, bar, or plate that closes the breech of a breechloading rifle, especially a sliding rod or bar that shoves a cartridge into the firing chamber as it closes the breech.
10. a jet of water, molten glass, etc.
11. an arrow, especially a short, heavy one for a crossbow.
12. a shaft of lightning; thunderbolt.
13. a length of timber to be cut into smaller pieces.
14. a slice from a log, as a short, round piece of wood used for a chopping block.

verb (used with object)

1. to fasten with or as with a bolt.
2. to discontinue support of or participation in; break with:

   to bolt a political party.

3. to shoot or discharge (a missile), as from a crossbow or catapult.
4. to utter hastily; say impulsively; blurt out.
5. to swallow (one's food or drink) hurriedly:

   She bolted her breakfast and ran to school.

6. to make (cloth, wallpaper, etc.) into bolts.
7. Fox Hunting. (of hounds) to force (a fox) into the open.

verb (used without object)

1. to make a sudden, swift dash, run, flight, or escape; spring away suddenly:

   The rabbit bolted into its burrow.

   Synonyms: bound, flee, scoot, speed, fly, run, rush, dash

2. to break away, as from one's political party.
3. to eat hurriedly or without chewing.
4. Horticulture. to produce flowers or seeds prematurely.

adverb

1. Archaic. with sudden meeting or collision; suddenly.

bolt

²

[ bohlt ]

verb (used with object)

1. to sift through a cloth or sieve.
2. to examine or search into, as if by sifting.

bolt

¹

/ bəʊlt /

verb

1. to pass (flour, a powder, etc) through a sieve
2. to examine and separate

bolt

²

/ bəʊlt /

noun

1. a bar that can be slid into a socket to lock a door, gate, etc
2. a bar or rod that forms part of a locking mechanism and is moved by a key or a knob
3. a metal rod or pin that has a head at one end and a screw thread at the other to take a nut
4. a sliding bar in a breech-loading firearm that ejects the empty cartridge, replaces it with a new one, and closes the breech
5. a flash of lightning
6. a sudden start or movement, esp in order to escape

   they made a bolt for the door

7. a sudden desertion, esp from a political party
8. a roll of something, such as cloth, wallpaper, etc
9. an arrow, esp for a crossbow
10. printing a folded edge on a sheet of paper that is removed when cutting to size
11. See expansion bolt
    mechanical engineering short for expansion bolt
12. a bolt from the blue
    a bolt from the blue a sudden, unexpected, and usually unwelcome event
13. shoot one's bolt
    shoot one's bolt to exhaust one's effort

    the runner had shot his bolt

verb

1. tr to secure or lock with or as with a bolt or bolts

   bolt your doors

2. tr to eat hurriedly

   don't bolt your food

3. intr; usually foll by from or out to move or jump suddenly

   he bolted from the chair

4. intr (esp of a horse) to start hurriedly and run away without warning
5. tr to roll or make (cloth, wallpaper, etc) into bolts
6. to desert (a political party, etc)
7. intr (of cultivated plants) to produce flowers and seeds prematurely
8. tr to cause (a wild animal) to leave its lair; start

   terriers were used for bolting rats

adverb

1. stiffly, firmly, or rigidly (archaic except in the phrase bolt upright )

Bolt

³

/ bəʊlt /

noun

1. BoltRobert (Oxton)19241995MBritishWRITING: playwrightFILMS AND TV: writer Robert ( Oxton ). 1924–95, British playwright. His plays include A Man for All Seasons (1960) and he also wrote a number of screenplays
2. BoltUsain1986MJamaicanSPORT AND GAMES: athlete Usain (juːˈseɪn). born 1986, Jamaican athlete: winner of the 100 metres and the 200 metres in the 2008 Olympic Games, setting world records at both distances

Derived Forms

• ˈbolter, noun

Other Words From

• bolter noun
• boltless adjective
• boltlike adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of bolt¹

First recorded before 1000; Middle English noun bolt, bold, bote “(crossbow) bolt, (lightning) bolt, (door) bolt, (cloth) bolt,” Old English bolt “arrow, (crossbow) bolt, catapult”; cognate with Dutch bout, German Bolz

Origin of bolt²

First recorded in 1150–1200; Middle English bulten, bolten, bouten, from Old French bul(e)ter, variant of unrecorded buteler, from Germanic; compare Middle High German biuteln “to sift,” derivative of biutel, Old High German būtil “bag,” whence German Beutel

Word History and Origins

Origin of bolt¹

C13: from Old French bulter , probably of Germanic origin; compare Old High German būtil bag

Origin of bolt²

Old English bolt arrow; related to Old High German bolz bolt for a crossbow

Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

1. bolt from the blue, a sudden and entirely unforeseen event: Also bolt out of the blue.

   His decision to leave college was a bolt from the blue for his parents.

2. bolt upright, stiffly upright; rigidly straight:

   The explosive sound caused him to sit bolt upright in his chair.

3. shoot one's bolt, Informal. to make an exhaustive effort or expenditure:

   The lawyer shot his bolt the first day of the trial and had little to say thereafter.

More idioms and phrases containing bolt

• nuts and bolts
• shoot one's bolt

Example Sentences

Over the course of 72 hours, around 11,000 bolts of lightning touched down across central California, starting 367 wildfires.

From Outside Online

Strangely, the smaller bolts appeared to come from just 18 kilometers below the cloud tops, where it’s too cold for liquid water to exist alone.

From Science News

The only components that aren’t 3D printed are the actuators, tendons, electronics, batteries, sensors, and the nuts and bolts.

From Singularity Hub 

The record distance for a lightning flash goes to a bolt on October 31, 2018.

From Science News For Students

Meanwhile, a lightning bolt on October 31, 2018, set the new record for length.

From Science News

Like any high-powered attorney who charges $100,000 for a retainer, Bolt always seems to be one step ahead of the competition.

From The Daily Beast

But when member organizations started to bolt, the WCF finally caved.

From The Daily Beast

But for once we see something new: The singer reloads the bolt of his machine-gun in time with the music.

From The Daily Beast

Ardie would bolt into the club with a huge smile and energy to match, raring to get on stage.

From The Daily Beast

Setting up the company “came to me as a lightning bolt last summer,” Lear tells me.

From The Daily Beast

Mrs. Ducksmith, who had sat with overwhelmed head in her hands, started bolt upright, and looked at him like one thunderstruck.

From Project Gutenberg

"Take some melon, Mr. Mudge," said we, as with a sudden bolt we recovered our speech and took another slice ourself.

From Project Gutenberg

"Some one has lost their way on the heath," said Dorothy, laying her hand upon the strong iron bolt that secured the door.

From Project Gutenberg

Susy, who had been awake, had heard the alarm and drawn the bolt so as to give time for hastily throwing on a few garments.

From Project Gutenberg

But failure to lock or bolt his door is not necessarily negligence on the part of a guest.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• bound
• dart
• dash
• drop out
• dump
• escape
• flee
• jump
• leap
• rush
• scamper
• scoot
• skip
• sprint
• take off