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Webster 1913 Edition


Surge

Surge

,
Noun.
[L.
surgere
,
surrectum
, to raise, to rise;
sub
under +
regere
to direct: cf. OF.
surgeon
,
sourgeon
, fountain. See
Regent
, and cf.
Insurrection
,
Sortie
,
Source
.]
1.
A spring; a fountain.
[Obs.]
“Divers surges and springs of water.”
Ld. Berners.
2.
A large wave or billow; a great, rolling swell of water, produced generally by a high wind.
He that doubteth is like the
surge
of the sea driven by the wind and tossed.
James i. 6 (Rev. Ver.)
He flies aloft, and, with impetuous roar,
Pursues the foaming
surges
to the shore.
Dryden.
3.
The motion of, or produced by, a great wave.
4.
The tapered part of a windlass barrel or a capstan, upon which the cable surges, or slips.

Surge

,
Verb.
I.
1.
To swell; to rise hifg and roll.
The
surging
waters like a mountain rise.
Spenser.
2.
(Naut.)
To slip along a windlass.

Surge

,
Verb.
T.
[
imp. & p. p.
Surged
;
p. pr. & vb. n.
Surging
.]
[Cf. F.
surgir
to cast anchor, to land. Cf.
Surge
,
Noun.
]
(Naut.)
To let go or slacken suddenly, as a rope;
as, to
surge
a hawser or messenger
; also, to slacken the rope about (a capstan).

Webster 1828 Edition


Surge

SURGE

,
Noun.
[L. surgo, to rise.]
1.
A large wave or billow; great rolling swell of water. [It is not applied to small waves, and is chiefly used in poetry and eloquence.]
He flies aloft, and with impetuous roar,
Pursues the foaming surges to the shore.
2.
In ship-building, the tapered part in front of the whelps, between the chocks of a capstan, on which the messenger may surge.

SURGE

,
Verb.
I.
To swell; to rise high and roll; as waves.
The surging waters like a mountain rise.
1.
To slip back, as, the cable surges.

Definition 2024


surge

surge

English

Noun

surge (plural surges)

  1. A sudden transient rush, flood or increase.
    • 2012 November 7, Matt Bai, “Winning a Second Term, Obama Will Confront Familiar Headwinds”, in New York Times:
      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.
    He felt a surge of excitement.
  2. The maximum amplitude of a vehicle's forward/backward oscillation
  3. (electricity) A sudden electrical spike or increase of voltage and current.
    A power surge at that generator created a blackout across the whole district.
  4. (nautical) The swell or heave of the sea. (FM 55-501).
    • Bible, James i. 6
      He that doubteth is like the surge of the sea driven by the wind and tossed.
    • Dryden
      He flies aloft, and, with impetuous roar, / Pursues the foaming surges to the shore.
  5. (obsolete) A spring; a fountain.
    • Ld. Berners
      divers surges and springs of water
  6. The tapered part of a windlass barrel or a capstan, upon which the cable surges, or slips.

Synonyms

Derived terms

Translations

Verb

surge (third-person singular simple present surges, present participle surging, simple past and past participle surged)

  1. (intransitive) To rush, flood, or increase suddenly.
    Toaster sales surged last year.
    • 1915, Emerson Hough, The Purchase Price, chapterII:
      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.
    • 2013 March 1, David S. Senchina, Athletics and Herbal Supplements”, in American Scientist, volume 101, number 2, page 134:
      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.
  2. To accelerate forwards, particularly suddenly.
    A ship surges forwards, sways sideways and heaves up.
    • 2011 September 2, Wales 2-1 Montenegro”, in BBC:
      Wales began the second half as they ended the first, closing down Montenegro quickly and the pressure told as Bale surged into the box and pulled the ball back for skipper Ramsey, arriving on cue, to double their lead.
  3. (transitive, nautical) To slack off a line.

Related terms

Translations

References

  • surge in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913
  • surge in The Century Dictionary, The Century Co., New York, 1911
  • FM 55-501

Anagrams


Latin

Verb

surge

  1. second-person singular present active imperative of surgō
    • Surge et ambula (Matt. IX. v.5)

Portuguese

Verb

surge

  1. third-person singular present indicative of surgir
  2. second-person singular imperative of surgir

Spanish

Verb

surge

  1. Informal second-person singular () affirmative imperative form of surgir.
  2. Formal second-person singular (usted) present indicative form of surgir.
  3. Third-person singular (él, ella, also used with usted?) present indicative form of surgir.