Explode with anger
Meaning
To suddenly become extremely angry in a dramatic and uncontrolled way.
Origin
The potent imagery of human emotion mirroring the physical world has roots in ancient times, but the specific idea of anger 'exploding' gained significant traction with the advent and common understanding of powerful explosives. While early uses of 'explosion' described sudden outbursts of passion, it was with the widespread knowledge of gunpowder and later dynamite from the 19th century onwards that this metaphor truly resonated. The sudden, uncontrolled release of immense energy, the destructive force, and the deafening impact of an actual explosion provided the perfect, visceral shorthand for the raw, uncontainable fury that can overwhelm a person, making 'explode with anger' a vivid and enduring idiom.
Examples
- She tends to explode with anger when people question her authority.
- The manager was about to explode with anger after discovering the repeated errors.