outpouring
Americannoun
Etymology
Origin of outpouring
1750–60; out- + pouring ( def. )
Explanation
An outpouring is a gush, flow, or fast stream of something. An outpouring of lava from an active volcano would be a bad thing, but an outpouring of support from the community would be a very good thing. A literal outpouring is something you can actually see, like an outpouring of water from a hose. It's actually more common to use outpouring figuratively, as in an outpouring of community support for a family of refugees or an outpouring of new work by a prolific artist. This noun dates from the fifteenth century, when it was first used to describe "a pouring out of spiritual things."
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.
Outpouring of support from fellow officers, and a portion of the community who consider all cops honest, infallible and 100% truthful.
From New York Times • Jul. 8, 2016
A version of this article appears in print on January 26, 2014, on page A19 of the with the headline: An Outpouring of Support As Queens Boy Is Laid to Rest.
From New York Times • Jan. 25, 2014
Obama’s Remarks on Race Prompt Emotional Outpouring on Twitter “Trayvon Martin could have been me 35 years ago.”
From New York Times • Jul. 19, 2013
Outpouring spectators, still inarticulate with excitement, told them the foreigner had won.
From Time Magazine Archive
Beginning with the manifestations of Spirit—of THE ALL—it will be noticed that there is ever the Outpouring and the Indrawing; the "Outbreathing and Inbreathing of Brahm," as the Brahmans word it.
From The Kybalion A Study of The Hermetic Philosophy of Ancient Egypt and Greece by Three Initiates
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.
