noun

bubble

/ˈbʌbəl/ · say it: BUB·ul

prices rising far above real value

In From the Business Pages

In more detail

1. (noun) a ball of liquid containing gas inside it

2. (noun) the situation when prices of something rise very quickly and then suddenly fall

3. (verb) to produce bubbles or make a bubbling sound

4. (verb) to rise up through a liquid in bubbles

Examples

1. The children blew bubbles with their bubble wands.
2. The housing bubble burst and many people lost money.
3. The water bubbled as it heated up.

How to use bubble

As a noun, 'bubble' refers either to a physical sphere of gas in liquid or figuratively to an unsustainable economic situation where assets are overvalued. As a verb, it describes the physical action of producing bubbles or the figurative sense of emerging or surfacing. The economic sense is most common in financial and news contexts.

Common phrases

bubble bursts
bubble up
economic bubble
housing bubble
bubble bath
soap bubble

Synonyms

sphere · globe · orb · blister · pocket

Word family

bubbles · bubbled · bubbling · bubbly · bubbler

A common mistake

Learners sometimes confuse 'bubble' (an unsustainable price rise) with 'market correction' or fail to recognize that 'bubble bursts' is the standard collocation, not 'bubble breaks.'

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