upheaval

American  

[uhp-hee-vuhl] / ʌpˈhi vəl /

noun

1. strong or violent change or disturbance, as in a society.

   the upheaval of war.

   Synonyms:

   turmoil, disorder, disruption

2. an act of upheaving, especially of a part of the earth's crust.

3. the state of being upheaved.

4. Geology. an upward warping of a part of the earth's crust, forcing certain areas into a relatively higher position than before.

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upheaval British  

/ ʌpˈhiːvəl /

noun

1. a strong, sudden, or violent disturbance, as in politics, social conditions, etc

2. geology another word for uplift

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Etymology

Origin of upheaval

First recorded in 1830–40; upheave + -al ²

Example Sentences

An AI upheaval is coming for media—and this journalist is already all in.

From The Wall Street Journal

This week, the upheaval in the Persian Gulf sent Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni to Algeria to firm up gas supplies.

From The Wall Street Journal

“Wall Street saw strong performance for much of last year, despite all of the ongoing domestic and international upheavals,” New York State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli said.

From MarketWatch

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

I thought it would be so cool to live through a time of principles and protest, of country-changing upheaval.

From The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• cataclysm
• catastrophe
• disaster
• disorder
• disruption
• disturbance
• eruption
• explosion
• ferment
• outbreak
• revolution
• shakeout
• temblor
• tremor
• tumult
• turmoil