dis·gorge | \ (ˌ)dis-ˈgȯrj 
\
\disgorged; disgorging; disgorges
Definition of disgorge
1a : to discharge by the throat and mouth : vomit Like llamas, which disgorge stomach juices to show pique or displeasure, many animals spew fluids from their mouths, and for a variety of reasons.— Noel Vietmeyer
2 : to discharge or let go of rapidly or forcefully
The train disgorged its passengers. Low-flying planes disgorged wave after wave of para-troopers.— Michael Dobbs Customers arrive in human waves, sometimes disgorged fifty at a time from their tour buses …— Barbara Ehrenreich
3 : to give up or reveal (something) on request or under pressure
The Times was threatened with its $5,000-a-day fine if it failed to obey a court order in New Jersey to disgorge the name of one of its news sources … — The New York Sun … the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on Sept. 5 ordered a … salesman to disgorge about $468,000 he had earned by defrauding Iowa banks that were his customers. — The National Law Journal
4 : to remove (sediment) from (a bottle of sparkling wine) after secondary fermentation in the bottle is complete
The bottles are gently turned daily for about six weeks until they are almost upside down in the rack. Then the sediment, concentrated in the neck of the bottle, is disgorged.— Leslie Martin
: to discharge contents
where the river disgorges into the sea
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Examples of disgorge in a Sentence
We watched the airplane disgorging its passengers at the gate.
The damaged ship disgorged thousands of gallons of oil into the bay.
The river disgorges into the ocean just south of the city.
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Recent Examples on the Web The feeling was sucked out, the bare facts remaining, like the fibre disgorged by the juicer.
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Kate Folk, The New Yorker, "Out There," 16 Mar. 2020 Subway trains clattered along their tracks, their doors squealing open to disgorge crowds of passengers.
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Ryan Lenora Brown, The Christian Science Monitor, "‘If you don’t work you don’t eat’: Where lockdowns have extra sting," 20 Apr. 2020 Piers where cruise ships normally dock, disgorging tourists by the thousands, remain empty.
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Los Angeles Times, "Seattle may be through the worst of coronavirus, but the stunned city is not celebrating," 14 Apr. 2020 The attorney general’s lawsuit seeks to disgorge profits from the scheme, unspecified civil penalties, and restitution to victims.
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BostonGlobe.com, "AG charges Melrose couple with running a tech support scam targeting seniors - The Boston Globe," 12 Dec. 2019 Thousands of cars zoom along Embarcadero to and from the Bay Bridge, while Ubers and Lyfts orbit the blocks, and cruise ships disgorge hundreds of tourists at a time.
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Rachel Swan, SFChronicle.com, "Next bike barrier frontier: San Francisco’s bustling Embarcadero," 10 Feb. 2020 Hundreds of buses flow off the Bay Bridge onto the bus deck, disgorging tens of thousands of passengers in the morning and taking them home in the evening.
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Michael Cabanatuan, SFChronicle.com, "Dormant for 10 months, the Transbay transit center is finally springing to life," 23 Dec. 2019 Private jets arrived throughout the day, disgorging supplies and volunteers, but not the one Mr. Symonette was waiting for.
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New York Times, "How One Bahamian Town, Nearly Destroyed, Is Coping After Dorian," 6 Sep. 2019 This year, a record 13 cruise ships dropped anchor, disgorging hundreds of passengers for brief tours of Nome's fabled main street, the end point for the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race.
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Hal Bernton, Anchorage Daily News, "As Alaska permafrost melts, roads sink, bridges tilt and greenhouse gases escape," 17 Dec. 2019
See MoreThese example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'disgorge.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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More Definitions for disgorge
disgorge
verbEnglish Language Learners Definition of disgorge
somewhat formal : to empty whatever is in the stomach through the mouth
: to let out or release (something)
: to flow out
See the full definition for disgorge in the English Language Learners Dictionary
disgorge
transitive verbdis·gorge | \ dis-ˈgȯrj \
\disgorged; disgorging
Legal Definition of disgorge
: to give up (as illegally gained profits) on request, under pressure, or by court order especially to prevent unjust enrichment
ordered a…salesman to disgorge about $468,000 he had earned by defrauding Iowa banks — National Law Journal
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Time Traveler for disgorge
The first known use of disgorge was in the 15th century
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