to burst upon
1
6.1
- phrasal verb
:
surgir de repente
- These were early signals of opposition political activity organized by the Mouvement de Redressement National (MORENA) that boldly burst upon the scene in November and December.
- burst upon the scene
Examples
-
A brand new thing has burst upon the world in the birthing of my granddaughter, and nothing will be the same again.
Blog text (4) -
Then all at once, the sound of chimes burst upon them from somewhere close, filling the courtyard with rich, melodious echoes.
Fiction book (1993) -
And then it burst upon me that I was a free man.
Academic text (1997) -
The secret agent with a license to kill burst upon the screen in 1962 to do battle with the eponymous Dr. No.
Blog text (25) -
He laughed aloud as the obvious answer burst upon him:
Fiction book (2002) -
Then they burst upon the world stage, taking on the two superpowers of the Middle East, the Eastern Roman and Sassanid Empires.
-
The bebop era burst upon the musical scene following World War II, leaving many of the big bands of the previous decade floundering in its wake.
Academic text (1999) -
Gaea healed—the thought burst upon him like sunlight through clouds.
Fiction book (1998) -
If nearly a century of principled effort has yielded only fragmentation and contention, it seems unlikely that more productive findings will burst upon us now.
Academic text (1993) -
When she finally realized the truth, it burst upon her all at once, leaving her speechless.
Synonyms
339
2.4
Come into someone's mind suddenly or unexpectedly
145
2.5
To appear or happen suddenly
144
3.5
Appear suddenly and briefly when you are not expecting it
140
3.8
To start suddenly, often with something dangerous like a fire or disease
123
4.2
To suddenly start in a strong or violent way, often showing strong feeling
115
1.9
Enter or appear suddenly with energy
43
3.3
To appear quickly in a place, often as new shops or cafes
20
2.9
To appear suddenly without warning
5
5.4
Suddenly start to happen with a lot of energy
2
3.4
Start suddenly and appear or happen quickly
To feel sudden shock or surprise
How Sudden
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning is directly derivable from the parts: 'burst' conveys sudden appearance or force and 'upon' indicates onto/at something, so together they describe something appearing suddenly at/on a location. This compositional motion/appearance + preposition pattern is common and predictable, so a B1 learner who knows both words will readily infer the MWE meaning.
Etymology
The phrasal verb burst upon gives a picture of something that suddenly burst out and comes upon a person, like a bright idea that hits your mind or a sound that breaks into a quiet room. So, it now means 'to appear or arrive suddenly and surprise people'.