Onrushes

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. A sudden or rapid movement toward a location or goal characterized by intensity and urgency
2. a fierce or abrupt surge in activity or energy
3. the act of advancing swiftly or forcefully, often causing disruption or change

Etymology: "Onrushes" is simply the plural of "onrush," a noun formed from the preposition-like prefix "on-" and the verb "rush." Its ancestry runs deep in English: Old English had "onrǣs," meaning an assault or attack, and the verb "onrǣsan," meaning to rush or rush on. The prefix "on-" carries the sense of forward movement toward something, so the compound pictures a body of motion driving onward at a target. The older meaning was more violent than the modern one. In Middle English, "onresen" meant to rush upon or attack, so the earliest sense was a hostile charge rather than a general surge. Over the centuries the word loosened from combat and came to describe any forceful advance, whether of a crowd, a tide, or a wave of change.

Synonyms: rushes, surges, floods, inundates, overflows

Antonyms: retreats, withdraws, recedes, subsides, diminishes