upheaval
Americannoun
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strong or violent change or disturbance, as in a society.
the upheaval of war.
- Synonyms:
- turmoil, disorder, disruption
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an act of upheaving, especially of a part of the earth's crust.
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the state of being upheaved.
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Geology. an upward warping of a part of the earth's crust, forcing certain areas into a relatively higher position than before.
noun
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a strong, sudden, or violent disturbance, as in politics, social conditions, etc
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geology another word for uplift
Etymology
Origin of upheaval
Explanation
Upheaval means a violent or sudden change. You might talk about an upheaval in government following an election where many incumbents are replaced. Upheaval is a geological term for the upward displacement of the earth's crust that has stretched to include a change in power or ideas. If you suddenly found out your favorite teacher was running a pyramid scheme and had escaped to a Caribbean island, you might experience an upheaval in your attitude toward teachers in general.
Vocabulary lists containing upheaval
Brace Yourself: Earthquake Words
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Mayhem! Chaos! Pandemonium!
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Bridge to Terabithia
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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.
The upheaval has created an opening for lesser-known contenders to gain traction just as voters are beginning to turn their attention to the race — a spotlight now intensified by the controversy.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 11, 2026
“If the adviser is bending because they need to increase the number of clients at all costs, or there’s upheaval or maybe high turnover at their firm, that’s not good,” Krueger said.
From MarketWatch • Apr. 10, 2026
McDermott, who ran German software giant SAP before joining ServiceNow in 2019, must guide the company through the most significant technological upheaval in the volatile history of software.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 3, 2026
Many observers, however, are pleased that the United States has not quit the WTO, thus avoiding major upheaval in the international trading system.
From Barron's • Mar. 27, 2026
That was the period when divine good humor and the hidden forces of human nature acted with impunity to provoke a state of emergency and upheaval in the laws of physics and logic.
From "The House of the Spirits: A Novel" by Isabel Allende
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.
