Blow away

This expression describes an overwhelming experience as in, “it blew me away” or “I was blown away”. Although it sounds like a modern expression, it has been around since the 16th century but was revived again during the 1960s. To blow away also means to defeat decisively or to kill by means of gunfire and has been American slang since the early 20th century but was again revived in the 1960s during the Vietnam War. See also Blow me.