emerge
Americanverb (used without object)
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to come forth into view or notice, as from concealment or obscurity.
a ghost emerging from the grave;
a ship emerging from the fog.
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to rise or come forth from or as if from water or other liquid.
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to come up or arise, as a question or difficulty.
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to come into existence; develop.
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to rise, as from an inferior or unfortunate state or condition.
verb
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to come up to the surface of or rise from water or other liquid
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to come into view, as from concealment or obscurity
he emerged from the cave
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(foll by from) to come out (of) or live (through a difficult experience)
he emerged from his ordeal with dignity
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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
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emergesimple
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emergessimple
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have emergedperfect
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has emergedperfect
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am emergingprogressive
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are emergingprogressive
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is emergingprogressive
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have been emergingperfect progressive
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has been emergingperfect progressive
Past
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emergedsimple
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had emergedperfect
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was emergingprogressive
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were emergingprogressive
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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
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List 1
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The Vernal Vocabulary of Spring
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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:
He sees investor doubts starting to emerge amid market wobbles this year for technology and artificial-intelligence themes.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 29, 2026
The aircraft hit the sand and rolled for about 100 feet before Mike made a hard turn, forcing the aircraft to brake and enabling the pair to emerge unscathed.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 28, 2026
When the convention was first announced, it sounded like it might be a thrilling opportunity to see real wheeling and dealing on a convention floor from which a nominee would eventually emerge.
From Slate ● Jul. 25, 2026
But they can disappear as quickly as they emerge once the weather conditions change.
From BBC ● Jul. 24, 2026
Parker Kingfisher’s face lights up when I emerge from the woods.
From "Legendary Frybread Drive-In" by Cynthia Leitich Smith
A similar story emerges from my data on banknotes.
From Salon ● Jul. 22, 2026
But look at how much traders are paying to hedge against big moves up or down in individual stocks and a totally different picture emerges.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 21, 2026
Her work examines whether a theory known as Gravity from Entropy can help explain how cosmic complexity emerges even as the Universe's total entropy increases.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 21, 2026
When it’s almost time for the plant to open, the spadix — a conic protrusion from inside the plant — emerges and accelerates in growth, climbing up to six inches per day.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 10, 2026
At that moment, a soldier emerges from it.
From "At Last She Stood" by Erin Entrada Kelly
But more significantly, the peptide trend literally emerged from a hypermasculine community in the first place: bodybuilder forums.
From Slate ● Jul. 29, 2026
As we dug through the shelves, one of the building’s residents emerged from the front door with the stride of a woman on a mission.
From Salon ● Jul. 28, 2026
The company has emerged as one of many beneficiaries of growing AI spending, riding a wave of investor fervor that pushed global semiconductor stocks to new highs this year.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 28, 2026
More cracks have emerged in the facade of the artificial-intelligence spending boom in July, right as more “hyperscalers” are due to report quarterly earnings.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 27, 2026
More dryads emerged from other trees; some were eight feet tall, their skin the soft cream brown of a sequoia, others the near black of the alder tree.
From "Impossible Creatures" by Katherine Rundell
Although Live at the Apollo will end, the BBC said it would "shortly be announcing digital plans focused on stand-up and emerging comedy talent".
From BBC ● Jul. 29, 2026
Global equities are only around 1% off their recent all-time highs in early June, while European high-yield spreads are tighter and emerging market and dollar high-yield spreads are broadly the same, according to HSBC.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 29, 2026
Until now Assembly Bill 2440 — which has made it most of the way through the legislative process — has enjoyed broad support, including from arts organizations, with no opponents emerging.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 29, 2026
The programme has acted as a springboard for emerging comedy talent, and helped boost the early careers of Michael McIntyre, Kevin Bridges, Micky Flanagan and Sarah Millican.
From BBC ● Jul. 29, 2026
For suddenly, just behind him, James heard a rustling of leaves, and he turned around and saw an old man in a crazy dark-green suit emerging from the bushes.
From "James and the Giant Peach" by Roald Dahl
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.
