student asking question

How come “flat” refer to "puncture"? also what are the other expressions that can be replaced with "flat"?

teacher

Native speaker’s answer

Rebecca

There is actually a difference here between the words "flat" and "puncture". The tire has "gone flat" because of a "puncture". "Puncture" here is a noun that refers to a small hole in the tire which caused the tire to go "flat". "Flat" is an adjective here, and it describes the state of the tire after it became punctured. A tire does not necessarily go flat after a puncture. Here's an example of the word "puncture" in a sentence: Ex: There's a puncture on my tire from running over a nail. There aren't very many synonyms for a "flat tire". When someone's tire completely runs out of air, it is almost always referred to as a "flat tire". You can use the words "blowout", "explode", or "burst" to describe a tire suddenly breaking, however, these are usually more extreme than a flat tire as they imply that the entire tire has broken off the wheel.

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