emer·gent
i-ˈmər-jənt 
1
a
: arising unexpectedly
b
: calling for prompt action : urgent
emergent danger
2
a
: rising out of or as if out of a fluid
emergent coastal islands
b
: rooted in shallow water and having most of its vegetative growth above water
an emergent plant
3
: arising as a natural or logical consequence
4
: newly formed or prominent
emergent nations
1
: something emergent
2
a
: a tree that rises above the surrounding forest
b
: an emergent plant
Examples of emergent in a Sentence
Adjective
since the problem was not seen as emergent, implementation of the expensive solution for it was continually put off
Recent Examples on the Web
Michael Hiltzik, Los Angeles Times, 8 May 2025
One of the platform’s more radical ideas is to treat the game itself as an emergent system that evolves alongside the player.
—Charlie Fink, Forbes.com, 1 May 2025
Mary Johnstone-Louis, Forbes.com, 25 Apr. 2025
Biofilms have emergent properties: traits that appear only when a system of individual items interacts.
—Carrie Arnold, Quanta Magazine, 21 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for emergent
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Adjective
Delays in rolling out vaccines to combat newly emergent disease strains and variants could cost millions of lives.
—Michael Hiltzik, Los Angeles Times, 8 May 2025
One of the platform’s more radical ideas is to treat the game itself as an emergent system that evolves alongside the player.
—Charlie Fink, Forbes.com, 1 May 2025
Noun
This is a core insight of systems thinking: systems, by definition, have emergent properties that no one within the system designs or even anticipates.
—Mary Johnstone-Louis, Forbes.com, 25 Apr. 2025
Biofilms have emergent properties: traits that appear only when a system of individual items interacts.
—Carrie Arnold, Quanta Magazine, 21 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for emergent
Cite this Entry
“Emergent.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/emergent. Accessed 12 May. 2025.
Copy CitationMedical Definition
emergent
adjective
emer·gent
i-ˈmər-jənt
: calling for prompt or urgent action
an emergent condition in a hemophiliac
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