Upheaving

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. The process of forcefully lifting or shifting an object A sudden and often drastic change in a social, political, or environmental context An intense emotional or psychological disturbance that leads to disorder or conflict
2. The act of moving something upward with great force ; a significant and often disruptive social or political transformation ; a strong emotional turmoil causing unrest
3. An action that forces an object upwards or out of place ; a major and sudden alteration in societal or environmental conditions ; a deep psychological upheaval resulting in chaos

Etymology: "Upheaving" is the present participle of "upheave," which comes from Middle English "upheven," itself drawn from Old English "ūpāhebban," meaning to lift up, raise up, or exalt. That Old English verb joined "up" to "heave," a word that once meant simply to raise something by effort. The same pairing appears across the Germanic languages: Dutch "opheffen" and German "aufheben" both carry the sense of lifting up, and the German form has the surprising extra meaning of cancelling or repealing something, as if a law were hoisted out of the way. Over the centuries, the English verb kept its physical sense of hoisting something heavy but also took on the figurative weight of "heave" in the sense of a surge or upward swell. Today's usage follows that pattern, with "upheaving" describing a forceful lifting, most often of earth or ground.

Synonyms: lifting, raising

Antonyms: lowering, sinking