burgeon

burgeon
/berr"jeuhn/, v.i.
1. to grow or develop quickly; flourish: The town burgeoned into a city. He burgeoned into a fine actor.
2. to begin to grow, as a bud; put forth buds, shoots, etc., as a plant (often fol. by out, forth).
v.t.
3. to put forth, as buds.
n.
4. a bud; sprout.
Also, bourgeon.
[1275-1325; (n.) ME burjon, burion; shoot, bud < AF burjun, burg(e)on; OF burjon < VL *burrione(m), acc. of *burrio, deriv. of LL burra wool, fluff (cf. BOURRÉE, BUREAU), presumably from the down covering certain buds; (v.) ME burg(e)onen, borgen < AF, OF, deriv. of the n.]
Syn. 1. bloom, blossom, mushroom, expand.
Usage. The two senses of BURGEON, "to bud" (The maples are burgeoning) and "to grow or flourish" (The suburbs around the city have been burgeoning under the impact of commercial growth), date from the 14th century. Today the sense "to grow or flourish" is the more common. Occasionally, objections are raised to the use of this sense, perhaps because of its popularity in journalistic writing.

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Universalium. 2010.

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Look at other dictionaries:

  • Burgeon — Bur geon, v. i. To bud. See {Bourgeon}. [1913 Webster] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • burgeon — index compound, expand, germinate, increase, proliferate, pullulate Burton s Legal Thesaurus. William C. Burton. 2006 …   Law dictionary

  • burgeon — UK US /ˈbɜːdʒən/ verb [I] ► to develop or grow quickly: »Product placement has burgeoned to the extent that corporate logos are now found in most mainstream films …   Financial and business terms

  • burgeon — early 14c., from O.Fr. borjoner to bud, sprout, from borjon a bud, shoot, pimple, of uncertain origin, perhaps from Germanic. Related: Burgeoned; burgeoning …   Etymology dictionary

  • burgeon — ► VERB ▪ grow or increase rapidly. ORIGIN Old French bourgeonner put out buds , from Latin burra wool …   English terms dictionary

  • burgeon — [bʉr′jən] vi. [ME burjounen < OFr burjoner < burjon, a bud < VL * burrio, a bud < LL burra, wool, shaggy garment] 1. to put forth buds, shoots, etc.; sprout 2. to grow or develop rapidly; expand; proliferate; flourish [the burgeoning… …   English World dictionary

  • burgeon — [[t]bɜ͟ː(r)ʤ(ə)n[/t]] burgeons, burgeoning, burgeoned VERB If something burgeons, it grows or develops rapidly. [LITERARY] Plants burgeon from every available space... My confidence began to burgeon later in life. [V ing] ...Japan s burgeoning… …   English dictionary

  • burgeon — UK [ˈbɜː(r)dʒ(ə)n] / US [ˈbɜrdʒən] verb [intransitive] Word forms burgeon : present tense I/you/we/they burgeon he/she/it burgeons present participle burgeoning past tense burgeoned past participle burgeoned literary to grow or develop quickly …   English dictionary

  • burgeon — /ˈbɜdʒən / (say berjuhn) verb (i) 1. Also, burgeon out, burgeon forth. to begin to grow, as a bud; to put forth buds, shoots, as a plant. 2. to grow rapidly: the population of the town burgeoned. –verb (t) 3. to put forth as buds. –noun 4. a bud; …  

  • burgeon — bur|geon [ˈbə:dʒən US ˈbə:r ] v [Date: 1300 1400; Origin: burgeon [i] bud (13 19 centuries), from Old French burjon, from Vulgar Latin burrio, from Latin burra; BUREAU] formal to grow or develop quickly ▪ the burgeoning market for digital cameras …   Dictionary of contemporary English

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