Surge Meaning
/sɝd͡ʒ/Definition, CEFR level B2, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.
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Definition
nounA sudden transient rush, flood or increase.
nounThe maximum amplitude of a vehicle's forward/backward oscillation.
Sentence Examples
I see a surge in loan growth.
It is expected that the tsunami surge will be ten meters or less.
She felt a sudden surge of anger.
CEFR Practice Quiz
During the storm, the waves suddenly ____, crashing over the pier.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
The sudden ____ in demand for the new smartphone took the electronics company by complete surprise today.
Word Origin & History
The verb is from Middle English ^((please verify)) surgen, possibly from Middle French sourgir, from Old French surgir (“to rise, ride near the shore, arrive, land”), from Old Catalan surgir, from Latin surgō, contraction of surrigō, subrigō (“lift up, raise, erect; intransitive rise, arise, get up, spring up, grow, etc.”, transitive verb), from sub (“from below; up”) + regō (“to stretch”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *h₃réǵeti (“to straighten; right”), from the root *h₃reǵ-; see regent. Doublet of source and sourd. The noun is from the verb.
Literary Quotations & Historical Citations
"As President Obama turns his attention once again to filling out a cabinet and writing an Inaugural Address, this much is clear: he should not expect to bask in a surge of national unity, or to witness a crowd of millions overrun the Mall just to say they were there."
— 2012 November 7, Matt Bai, “Winning a Second Term, Obama Will Confront Familiar Headwinds”, in New York Times:
"When the diesel was being worked full out, the ammeter normally showed about 1,500-1,600 amps, with occasional surges of current at starting or up the steepest gradients to 1,700 or even 1,800 amps."
— 1959 March, Cecil J. Allen, “Locomotive Running Past and Present”, in Trains Illustrated, page 132:
"He flies aloft, and, with impetuous roar, / Pursues the foaming surges to the shore."
— 1697, Virgil, “Georgics”, in John Dryden, transl., The Works of Virgil: Containing His Pastorals, Georgics, and Æneis. […], London: […] Jacob Tonson, […], →OCLC:
"Carried somehow, somewhither, for some reason, on these surging floods, were these travelers, of errand not wholly obvious to their fellows, yet of such sort as to call into query alike the nature of their errand and their own relations."
— 1910, Emerson Hough, chapter II, in The Purchase Price: Or The Cause of Compromise, Indianapolis, Ind.: The Bobbs-Merrill Company, →OCLC:
"Athletes' use of herbal supplements has skyrocketed in the past two decades. At the top of the list of popular herbs are echinacea and ginseng, whereas garlic, St. John's wort, soybean, ephedra and others are also surging in popularity or have been historically prevalent."
— 2013 March 26, David S. Senchina, “Athletics and Herbal Supplements”, in American Scientist, volume 101, number 2, page 134:
Explore More B2 Vocabulary Words
CEFR Practice Quiz
During the storm, the waves suddenly ____, crashing over the pier.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
The sudden ____ in demand for the new smartphone took the electronics company by complete surprise today.