SQUIB
What does "SQUIB" mean?
A small firework or explosive charge that burns with a hiss and a minor bang.
Meanings
- A small firework or miniature explosive device. The prop master rigged a squib under the actor's shirt for the gunshot scene.
- A short, witty, often satirical piece of writing or speech. The magazine ran a sharp little squib mocking the new tax. formal
- A small electrical igniter used to set off a larger charge. The blasting crew wired each squib to the detonator. technical
Did you know?
- The phrase 'damp squib', meaning an anticlimax, comes literally from this word: a squib firework that has gotten wet fizzles instead of banging.
Word origin
Of uncertain origin, recorded from the 1520s; likely imitative of the hiss and small pop of a firework.
Remember it
A SQUIB ends with a quick QUI-B - the hiss and little pop you hear before nothing much happens.
A little poem
It promised thunder, sold a single spark.
The crowd held its breath for the great loud thing-
and got a hiss, a wisp, and silence back.
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Wordplay
- The critic's review was a squib in both senses: a clever little jab that ultimately went off with barely a pop.
What it teaches
A loud fuse promises nothing; plenty of things that hiss the most go off the least.
Quick facts
What does SQUIB mean?
A small firework or explosive charge that burns with a hiss and a minor bang.
Is SQUIB a valid word?
Yes — SQUIB is one of the answer words in Wordul, the daily word game.
How many letters is SQUIB?
SQUIB has 5 letters and 1 syllable.
Where does SQUIB come from?
Of uncertain origin, recorded from the 1520s; likely imitative of the hiss and small pop of a firework.
What can SQUIB teach us?
A loud fuse promises nothing; plenty of things that hiss the most go off the least.
How players do
Be the first to solve it.