outburst
Americannoun
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outbursts
plural
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a sudden and violent release or outpouring.
an outburst of tears.
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a sudden spell of activity, energy, etc.
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a public disturbance; riot; outbreak.
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a bursting forth; eruption.
noun
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a sudden and violent expression of emotion
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an explosion or eruption
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of outburst
Explanation
When you can't help an angry shout or a burst of emotion, that's an outburst. A toddler's outburst might take the form of a full-blown temper tantrum. An outburst of passion or emotion can be angry words, a broken glass, or a triumphant whoop. There are also figurative outbursts, like the outburst of political enthusiasm within a particular group of voters, or an outburst of energy in the midst of a modern dance performance. The Middle English verb that proceeded outburst was outbresten.
Vocabulary lists containing outburst
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:
Slugger Cal Raleigh followed his 60-home run outburst by hitting under .200.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 18, 2026
She told the BBC her comment was "an emotional outburst" that was not intended to be public and that she regretted the tone used.
From BBC ● Sep. 13, 2026
The research produced one of the most detailed optical records ever assembled of a black hole outburst.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 31, 2026
Taken aback by Gavriel’s fiery outburst, Yair asks in disbelief, “why can’t we live side by side in peace?”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 24, 2026
Her outburst is so uncharacteristic, I can’t help but laugh.
From "A Place at the Table" by Saadia Faruqi and Laura Shovan
Amatya, the company’s acting chief executive, said the project was designed to survive intense, low-probability floods, but not glacial lake outbursts and catastrophic debris flows.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 9, 2026
"So you are going to get more landslides, debris flows, glacial meltwater, lake outbursts, glacier collapses, because climate warming ultimately destabilises these high mountain environments."
From BBC ● Aug. 27, 2026
Her husky voice is familiar to pilots in Greek skies -- as are her outbursts.
From Barron's ● Aug. 23, 2026
But where once these kinds of outbursts would have made waves, they now seem to ripple at best.
From Slate ● Aug. 18, 2026
“A few seconds of his rant. I don’t have the time to waste on outbursts like that.”
From "Millionaires for the Month" by Stacey McAnulty
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.
