soar

American  

[sawr, sohr] / sɔr, soʊr /

verb (used without object)

soars, present (3rd person singular) soared, past participle, past soaring present participle

1. to fly upward, as a bird.

2. to fly at a great height, without visible movements of the pinions, as a bird.

3. to glide along at a height, as an airplane.

4. to rise or ascend to a height, as a mountain.

   Synonyms:

   mount, tower

5. to rise or aspire to a higher or more exalted level.

   His hopes soared.

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noun

1. an act or instance of soaring.

2. the height attained in soaring.

soar British  

/ sɔː /

verb

1. to rise or fly upwards into the air

2. (of a bird, aircraft, etc) to glide while maintaining altitude by the use of ascending air currents

3. to rise or increase in volume, size, etc

   soaring prices

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noun

1. the act of soaring

2. the altitude attained by soaring

Synonym Usage

See fly ².

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• soarer
  noun
• soaring
  noun
• soaringly
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Participles

• soaring
  present
• soared
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• soar
  simple
• soars
  simple
• have soared
  perfect
• has soared
  perfect
• am soaring
  progressive
• are soaring
  progressive
• is soaring
  progressive
• have been soaring
  perfect progressive
• has been soaring
  perfect progressive

Past

• soared
  simple
• had soared
  perfect
• was soaring
  progressive
• were soaring
  progressive
• had been soaring
  perfect progressive

Future

• will soar
  simple
• will have soared
  perfect
• will be soaring
  progressive
• will have been soaring
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of soar

First recorded in 1325–75; Middle English soren, from Middle French essorer, from unattested Vulgar Latin exaurāre, equivalent to Latin ex- ex- ¹ + aur(a) “air” + -āre infinitive suffix

Explanation

To soar means more than just to fly; it means to rise swiftly, to feel the wind slipping below you as you ride it higher, higher, higher. Flying is just moving through the air. Soaring, though, suggests exhilaration, even joy. Think about the anticipation you feel when you buy a lottery ticket — your hopes soar as you contemplate the possibilities. It's the same wonderful feeling you get when someone you have a crush on notices you, when you land that perfect job, when you hold your child. The word soar comes from the Latin, ex-, which means "out," and aura, meaning "breeze, air," together meaning "out of the air," which is precisely how it feels to soar.

Example Sentences

Despite the conflict highlighting vulnerabilities in LNG supply, global demand is set to soar to nearly 700 million tons a year by 2050, Shell said.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 30, 2026

It's something like how petrol prices soar because of some international incident, and even when they come down from a peak, they don't seem to go back to where they started.

From BBC • Jun. 26, 2026

SK hynix, a key supplier to the world's most valuable company Nvidia, has seen profits soar due to frenzied global demand for the hardware that powers AI tools.

From Barron's • Jun. 24, 2026

Hernández could only watch the ball soar, hunched over.

From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 21, 2026

I soar beneath the trees, transform into wind.

From "The Running Dream" by Wendelin Van Draanen

Related Words

• ascend
• escalate
• lift
• mount
• rise
• rocket
• sail
• shoot
• shoot up
• skyrocket
• top