bubble

 
Pronunciation: /ˈbʌb(ə)l/

noun

  • 1a thin sphere of liquid enclosing air or another gas: we’d shake up a piece of soap in a tin of warm water and blow bubbles
  • an air- or gas-filled spherical cavity in a liquid or a solidified liquid such as glass: the white foamy part of a broken wave is largely made up of air bubbles
  • 2used to refer to a good or fortunate situation that is isolated from reality or unlikely to last: we both lived in a bubble, the kind provided by occupying a privileged pied-à-terre in Greenwich Village
  • used to refer to a significant, usually rapid, increase in asset prices that is soon followed by a collapse in prices and typically arises from speculation or enthusiasm rather than intrinsic increases in value: the US economy squandered trillions as a result of the 1990s stock market bubble many companies enjoyed rapid expansion before the bubble burst
  • 3a transparent domed cover or enclosure: piglets born into a sterile bubble
  • a place or position that is protected from danger or unpleasant reality: they are not on tour packages seeing foreign ports from a bubble
  • 4 (also bubble shell) a marine mollusc that typically has a thin scroll-like shell.
    • Bullidae and other families, order Cephalaspidea, class Gastropoda

verb

[no object]
  • (of a liquid) form rising bubbles of gas or air: a pot of coffee bubbled away on the stove
  • make a bubbling sound: close by, a stream bubbled along through reeds and rushes (as adjective bubbling) a bubbling fountain
  • (bubble with/over with) be filled with an irrepressible positive feeling: Ellen was bubbling with enthusiasm
  • (bubble up) (of a feeling) become more intense and approach the point of being expressed: the fury bubbling up inside her

Phrases

burst someone's bubble

shatter someone’s illusions about something or destroy their sense of well-being.

on the bubble

North American informal (of a sports player or team) occupying the last qualifying position on a team or for a tournament, and liable to be replaced by another: he’s never lived up to his high selection, and is on the bubble for a roster spot figurative several of last year’s new TV shows are on the bubble
[from sit on the bubble, with the implication that the bubble may burst]

Origin:

Middle English: partly imitative, partly an alteration of burble