emergent

[ ih-mur-juhnt ]

See synonyms for emergent on Thesaurus.com

adjective

coming into view or notice; issuing.
emerging; rising from a liquid or other surrounding medium.

coming into existence, especially with political independence: the emergent nations of Africa.
arising casually or unexpectedly.
calling for immediate action; urgent.
Evolution. displaying emergence.

noun

Ecology. an aquatic plant having its stem, leaves, etc., extending above the surface of the water.

Origin of emergent

1350–1400; Middle English (<Middle French ) <Latin ēmergent- (stem ofēmergēns) arising out of, present participle of ēmergere to emerge

Other words from emergent

e·mer·gent·ly, adverb
e·mer·gent·ness, noun
non·e·mer·gent, adjective
re·e·mer·gent, adjective
un·e·mer·gent, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use emergent in a sentence

Uh, and that’s where some of the challenges and our understanding of what healthy public organization means is still emergent for us to be able to boil it down into these simple metrics.
EmTech Stage: Twitter’s CTO on misinformation | Tate Ryan-Mosley | November 18, 2020 | MIT Technology Review
We brought a diverse group of people together to review these trends and emergent issues and develop scenarios of what the future could look like.
Why We Need a Collective Vision to Design the Future of Health | Abner Mason | November 11, 2020 | Singularity Hub
There’s a growing list of experimental biologists who are interested in these kinds of emergent adaptive behaviors in biological systems.
The Physicist’s New Book of Life - Issue 92: Frontiers | Michael Brooks | October 21, 2020 | Nautilus
If this account is correct, then short-termism is an emergent property of the cultural, economic, and technological moment.
Humanity is stuck in short-term thinking. Here’s how we escape. | Katie McLean | October 21, 2020 | MIT Technology Review
Artifacts reflect culture, and cultural complexity is an emergent property.
When Did We Become Fully Human? What Fossils and DNA Tell Us About the Evolution of Modern Intelligence | Nick Longrich | October 18, 2020 | Singularity Hub

British Dictionary definitions for emergent

emergent

/ (ɪˈmɜːdʒənt) /

adjective

coming into being or notice: an emergent political structure
(of a nation) recently independent

noun

an aquatic plant with stem and leaves above the water

Derived forms of emergent

emergently, adverb

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Scientific definitions for emergent

emergent

[ ĭ-mûr′jənt ]

Rooted below a body of water or in an area that is periodically submerged but extending above the water level. Used of aquatic plants such as cattails, rushes, or cord grass.

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