emerge
Americanverb (used without object)
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emerges,
present (3rd person singular)
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emerged,
past participle, past
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emerging
present participle
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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
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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:
Friedman was, as usual, channeling mainstream foreign policy dogma, which briefly held that constructive change might emerge from the chaotic aftermath of the Oct.
From Salon ● Sep. 14, 2026
El Nino also poses an upside risk to prices, although any significant impact on production could emerge only from 2Q 2027, she adds.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 11, 2026
Whether it is nuclear power, the global population explosion, cyberhackers or the Y2K bug, most doomsday scenarios have not played out because people, governments and corporations adjust and fix problems as they emerge.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 11, 2026
Davies said this had caused even more cockroaches to emerge.
From BBC ● Sep. 9, 2026
I watch as they emerge, ghostlike, from the shadows, clutching gas masks and items most dear to them.
From "The Bletchley Riddle" by Ruta Sepetys and Steve Sheinkin
“The boundaries between circus, Broadway, and concert language become fluid, and something new emerges from that intersection.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 14, 2026
Instead, it emerges from a specific atomic structure that forms dynamically while the reaction is taking place.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 9, 2026
As he unwraps it a huge beam of a smile emerges over his face when he realises, he now has a copy of his Desert Island Discs book choice – The 1974 Beano Annual.
From BBC ● Sep. 8, 2026
LIV said that it has entered into a restructuring support agreement with BC Partners, the British investment firm, and other potential investors to recapitalize the organization when it emerges from bankruptcy.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 8, 2026
This arrangement, however, is not perfect, for dry land emerges from the water, and on the land all four elements interact.
From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton
When the participants were separated into three groups according to their level of systemic aging, another pattern emerged.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 14, 2026
Ninety years later, something remarkably close to that vision has emerged.
From Salon ● Sep. 13, 2026
Riyadh on Friday said it had shut the pipeline as a precaution, as satellite images of scorched ground and smoke near the site emerged.
From BBC ● Sep. 12, 2026
Beyond the weirdness, however, a solution at the quarterback position might have emerged for the Monarchs — in the form of a freshman, no less.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 12, 2026
Men never remembered her teeth, her real face, the monster that emerged when she let down her hair.
From "Night Owls" by A.R. Vishny
In the longer term, rapid AI analysis of online patient conversations could potentially become an early detection system for emerging health concerns involving drugs, supplements and wellness products.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 13, 2026
Now, the company is becoming a “credible emerging competitor,” he said.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 11, 2026
Navy ships in the Middle East, according to an Anthropic report warning of emerging national-security dangers.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 11, 2026
Some in government are already quietly questioning, though, whether the ambition of that rhetoric can be squared with the early signals emerging from the Treasury under the new Chancellor John Healey.
From BBC ● Sep. 11, 2026
Near the Street of the Sailmakers he spied the baker's boy, Kai, emerging from his master’s shop with a laden basket on his head.
From "The Golden Goblet" by Eloise Jarvis McGraw
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.
