eruption

noun

erup·​tion i-ˈrəp-shən 

1

a

: an act, process, or instance of erupting

b

: the breaking out of a rash on the skin or mucous membrane

2

: a product of erupting (such as a skin rash)

Synonyms

• explosion
• outburst
• burst

Examples of eruption in a Sentence

a great eruption of glee as it suddenly dawned on her that she had won

the eruption of the volcano Krakatoa was one of the most violent in global history

Recent Examples on the Web

The country’s water and energy shortages have triggered a few demonstrations, but a post-war security-force crackdown has prevented any re-eruption of the Woman, Life, Freedom protests that rocked the country in 2022. —Ian Bremmer, Time, 14 Sep. 2025

Stretching across 8 light-years, the rare stellar eruption is about twice the distance between our sun and the next nearest stars, the Alpha Centauri system. —Eric Lagatta, USA Today, 12 Sep. 2025

In this demo expedition, his group deployed hyper-tech robotic explorers to map a lava tube on a Mars analog site, in the Spanish Canary Islands, which, like the Hawaiian archipelago, were produced via a series of volcanic eruptions. —Kevin Holden Platt, Forbes.com, 9 Sep. 2025

Around the time of this flip, solar activity gradually ramps up, causing more solar eruptions like solar flares and coronal mass ejections. —Maria Azzurra Volpe, MSNBC Newsweek, 8 Sep. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1555, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Phrases Containing eruption

• creeping eruption
• post-eruption

Rhymes for eruption

• corruption
• disruption
• irruption
• incorruption
• interruption

Kids Definition

eruption

noun

erup·​tion i-ˈrəp-shən 

1

: an act, process, or instance of erupting

2

: a product (as a skin rash) of erupting

Medical Definition

eruption

noun

erup·​tion i-ˈrəp-shən 

1

: an act, process, or instance of erupting

the eruption of the tooth from the gum

specifically : the breaking out of an exanthem or enanthem on the skin or mucous membrane (as in measles)

2

: something produced by an act or process of erupting: as

a

: the condition of the skin or mucous membrane caused by erupting

b

: one of the lesions (as a pustule) constituting this condition