emerge
Americanverb (used without object)
-
emerges,
present (3rd person singular)
-
emerged,
past participle, past
-
emerging
present participle
-
to come forth into view or notice, as from concealment or obscurity.
a ghost emerging from the grave;
a ship emerging from the fog.
-
to rise or come forth from or as if from water or other liquid.
-
to come up or arise, as a question or difficulty.
-
to come into existence; develop.
-
to rise, as from an inferior or unfortunate state or condition.
verb
-
to come up to the surface of or rise from water or other liquid
-
to come into view, as from concealment or obscurity
he emerged from the cave
-
(foll by from) to come out (of) or live (through a difficult experience)
he emerged from his ordeal with dignity
-
to become apparent
several interesting things emerged from the report
Usage
What are other ways to say emerge? To emerge is to come forth into view or notice, as from concealment or obscurity. How is emerge different from emanate and issue? Find out on Thesaurus.com.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
emergesimple
-
emergessimple
-
have emergedperfect
-
has emergedperfect
-
am emergingprogressive
-
are emergingprogressive
-
is emergingprogressive
-
have been emergingperfect progressive
-
has been emergingperfect progressive
Past
-
emergedsimple
-
had emergedperfect
-
was emergingprogressive
-
were emergingprogressive
-
had been emergingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of emerge
First recorded in 1630–40; from Latin ēmergere “to arise out of,” equivalent to ē- e- 1 + mergere “to dive, sink”
Explanation
To emerge means to come out into view or come forth. You might hope to emerge from an epic perming session looking like a beauty queen, but chances are it will just look like you got electrocuted. From the Latin emergere, meaning to “rise out or up, bring forth, bring to light,” emerge is an intransitive verb that might bring to mind the image of a whale rising up from the depths of the sea, or of a person popping out from a dark corner to spook you. Appear and peep are synonyms, while dip and sink are antonyms.
Vocabulary lists containing emerge
100 Words Every Middle Schooler Should Know
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
List 1
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
The Vernal Vocabulary of Spring
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
While the economic impact of AI has yet to fully emerge, Musk has already surpassed the richest Americans in history in terms of his relative share of gross domestic output.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 9, 2026
And plague symptoms emerge really quickly, sometimes within a day, which means less opportunity for an infected person to spread the disease without knowing.
From Slate ● Oct. 8, 2026
Computer simulations suggest terrestrial planets, including Earth, should emerge within the first few hundred million years after a solar system begins forming.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 7, 2026
In the build-up during the week, Powell had challenged his players to earn legendary status, knowing that was their long-term reward if they could emerge victorious.
From BBC ● Oct. 3, 2026
He searched the forest around him, hoping she’d emerge.
From "The Undead Fox of Deadwood Forest" by Aubrey Hartman
As the "wicker husband", he emerges as a strapping, dashing life-size piece of furniture.
From BBC ● Oct. 8, 2026
Between Jordan’s charm and Misty’s smile that only emerges around him, the film flirts with becoming a romantic comedy.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 7, 2026
The detectors can also be ineffective as a new crop of AI "humanizing" tools emerges that rewrite AI-generated text to make it appear more human-like, researchers warn.
From Barron's ● Oct. 6, 2026
A tree in the distance falls, and a giant hand emerges from the ground to put it back in place.
From Salon ● Oct. 5, 2026
Jakob’s voice emerges from nowhere, making me jump.
From "The Bletchley Riddle" by Ruta Sepetys and Steve Sheinkin
But on Sunday, it emerged the US had pulled its bombers out of the base and returned them to America.
From BBC ● Oct. 8, 2026
In June, cyber startup Ent emerged from stealth with $100 million in seed funding, and AI-native startup Oak followed with a $60 million debut round in July.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 8, 2026
The review will also build on themes that have emerged from safety inspections of maternity units, including the need to listen to families, investigate serious incidents fully and learn from mistakes.
From BBC ● Oct. 8, 2026
The crypto firm has emerged as a serious player in providing swap financing to leveraged exchange-traded funds, or those that let investors amplify their bets on a specific stock or index.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 7, 2026
But most of Liberty City was a few feet higher than a lot of the other neighborhoods, which meant that as the water slowly receded, Liberty City emerged like an island from Lake Miami.
From "Two Degrees" by Alan Gratz
"The microbiome is emerging as an important factor in cancer care," said co-senior study author Marcel van den Brink, MD, PhD, chief physician executive at City of Hope.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 7, 2026
Despite leaving, Tugay did not follow Ozel, saying he would remain independent, with rumours emerging over the summer that he was considering defecting to AKP -- all of which he denied.
From Barron's ● Oct. 7, 2026
But now, candidates across the country, like Lawrence, are trumpeting their experiences as renters and tenant organizers, fueling an emerging political movement focused on making renting more sustainable.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 6, 2026
The company has been investing in wellness programs that combine fitness, nutrition and social engagement, while exploring emerging therapies aimed at extending healthy lifespans.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 6, 2026
Shapes were emerging now, and not only shapes, but movement.
From "The Very, Very Far North" by Dan Bar-el
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
