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What factor would not increase the height of a storm surge?

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surge

American  

[surj] / sɜrdʒ /

noun

• surges
  plural

1. 

   a strong, wavelike, forward movement, rush, or sweep.

   the onward surge of an angry mob.

2. a strong, swelling, wavelike volume or body of something.

   a billowing surge of smoke.

3. a sudden, strong increase or burst.

   a surge of energy; surges of emotion.

4. Military. a significant increase in the number of troops deployed to an area.

5. the rolling swell of the sea.

6. the swelling and rolling sea.

   The surge crashed against the rocky coast.

7. a swelling wave; billow.

8. Meteorology.

   1. a widespread change in atmospheric pressure that is in addition to cyclonic and normal diurnal changes.

   2. storm surge.

9. Electricity.

   1. a sudden rush or burst of current or voltage.

   2. a violent oscillatory disturbance.

10. Nautical. a slackening or slipping back, as of a rope or cable.

11. Machinery.

    1. an uneven flow and strong momentum given to a fluid, as water in a tank, resulting in a rapid, temporary rise in pressure.

    2. pulsating unevenness of motion in an engine or gas turbine.

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verb (used without object)

• surges,
  present (3rd person singular)
• surged,
  past participle,  past
• surging
  present participle

1. (of a ship) to rise and fall, toss about, or move along on the waves.

   to surge at anchor.

2. to rise, roll, move, or swell forward in or like waves.

   The sea surged against the shore. The crowd surged back and forth.

3. to rise as if by a heaving or swelling force.

   Blood surged to his face.

4. Electricity.

   1. to increase suddenly, as current or voltage.

   2. to oscillate violently.

5. Nautical.

   1. to slack off or loosen a rope or cable around a capstan or windlass.

   2. to slip back, as a rope.

6. Machinery. to move with pulsating unevenness, as something driven by an engine or gas turbine.

verb (used with object)

• surges,
  present (3rd person singular)
• surged,
  past participle,  past
• surging
  present participle

1. to cause to surge or roll in or as in waves.

2. Nautical. to slacken (a rope).

surge British  

/ sɜːdʒ /

noun

1. a strong rush or sweep; sudden increase

   a surge of anger

2. the rolling swell of the sea, esp after the passage of a large wave

3. a heavy rolling motion or sound

   the surge of the trumpets

4. an undulating rolling surface, as of hills

5. a billowing cloud or volume

6. nautical a temporary release or slackening of a rope or cable

7. a large momentary increase in the voltage or current in an electric circuit

8. an upward instability or unevenness in the power output of an engine

9. astronomy a short-lived disturbance, occurring during the eruption of a solar flare

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verb

1. (intr) (of waves, the sea, etc) to rise or roll with a heavy swelling motion

2. (intr) to move like a heavy sea

3. nautical to slacken or temporarily release (a rope or cable) from a capstan or (of a rope, etc) to be slackened or released and slip back

4. (intr) (of an electric current or voltage) to undergo a large momentary increase

5. rare (tr) to cause to move in or as if in a wave or waves

surge Scientific  

/ sûrj /

1. A coastal rise in water level caused by wind.

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• surger
  noun
• surgeless
  adjective
• unsurging
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• surges
  plural

Participles

• surging
  present
• surged
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• surge
  simple
• surges
  simple
• have surged
  perfect
• has surged
  perfect
• am surging
  progressive
• are surging
  progressive
• is surging
  progressive
• have been surging
  perfect progressive
• has been surging
  perfect progressive

Past

• surged
  simple
• had surged
  perfect
• was surging
  progressive
• were surging
  progressive
• had been surging
  perfect progressive

Future

• will surge
  simple
• will have surged
  perfect
• will be surging
  progressive
• will have been surging
  perfect progressive

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Etymology

Origin of surge

First recorded in 1480–90; perhaps from Latin surgere “to arise, stand up,” contracted from surrigere, from sur- sur- ² ( def. ) + -rigere, combining form of regere “to make straight, guide, rule”

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Explanation

A surge is a sudden strong swelling, like a tsunami wave that engulfs the land. Although a surge offers a fluid image, anything can experience a sudden surge, including emotions, political support, or an angry mob. The original Latin word surgere, meaning “to spring up or rise,” serves as the basis for the word surge, which refers to a great sudden growth or swelling. If you are watching a sad movie and you experience a sudden surge of emotion, do you quietly reach for a tissue, pretend something's in your eye, or simply weep and sob with reckless abandon? Yeah, me too. Christmas shopping can be dangerous when there is a surge of interest in one toy and desperate shoppers surge into stores trying to grab it up.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

surge surges surged surging

The months-long pollution spell has closed schools, fuelled a surge in respiratory conditions and restricted outdoor activities in Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore and East Timor.

From Barron's ● Oct. 17, 2026

The Roadster could generate new excitement around the company, but it won’t make revenues surge.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 17, 2026

Warsh focused on the surge in investment thanks to artificial intelligence while acknowledging that inflation was elevated.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 16, 2026

Near the hurricane's eyewall, the release of latent heat fuels powerful convection, causing warm, moist air to surge upward and form towering cumulonimbus clouds.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 16, 2026

Nok swallowed a surge of nervousness and bowed to the Governor, keeping her eyes down until she heard his deep voice say, “Welcome, child. Please come in.”

From "A Wish in the Dark" by Christina Soontornvat

Forecasters warned that storm surges could reach as high as 5 feet in parts of Alabama and Florida.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 10, 2026

For those who have not evacuated, "the main thing will be having multiple ways to receive warnings" about tornadoes and storm surges, Watson said.

From BBC ● Oct. 10, 2026

The NHC warned residents in the likely impact zone that emergency preparations to protect lives and property from high winds and storm surges "should be rushed to completion."

From Barron's ● Oct. 9, 2026

That stretch is prone to flooding during high tides and storm surges.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 9, 2026

But then fury surges through me and I slam the phone down.

From "Internment" by Samira Ahmed

Singapore's air pollution surged to 251 on IQAir's Air Quality Index level into very unhealthy levels at around 0400 GMT on Friday.

From Barron's ● Oct. 16, 2026

Producer prices surged 1.3% in September, the largest monthly increase in more than four years and roughly twice what economists expected.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 16, 2026

US government borrowing costs surged on the news, with 10-year Treasuries hitting fresh 24-year highs, though they later retreated on investor demand owing to their attractive yields above 5.3 percent.

From Barron's ● Oct. 15, 2026

In Asia, China’s space-infrastructure funding through the third quarter surged to 2.7 times its 2025 total, led by mega-rounds for commercial satellite builders.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 13, 2026

People surged from the road across the slack, following the other boys as they raced after our last, great rocket.

From "October Sky" by Homer Hickam

Gasoline costs accounted for more than half of the monthly CPI jump, surging 9.1 percent in September.

From Barron's ● Oct. 15, 2026

And on Thursday, the producer-price index will be the last reading to help investors gauge the toll of surging diesel prices in the United States before the midterm elections.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 14, 2026

Costs for everything from energy to labor are surging.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 13, 2026

AMD has benefited from surging demand for server CPUs so far this year as agentic AI, or systems that can carry out tasks with little to no human prompting, takes off.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 12, 2026

The animals are surging straight toward the house, with their heads down like bulls.

From "Kwame Crashes the Underworld" by Craig Kofi Farmer

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