| Kenneth G. Wilson (1923–). The Columbia Guide to Standard American English. 1993. |
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| erupt, irrupt (vv.), eruptive, irruptive (adjs.) |
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| Erupt means “to burst out or break out,” as in When I was fourteen, my acne erupted; Lava erupted from the side of the volcano. Irrupt means “to burst into” or, of populations, “to burst into vigorous growth”: The floods overran the dike and irrupted into the city streets. When the years of drought ended, the prairie grasses of the area simply irrupted. Eruptive and irruptive are similarly differentiated: essentially something eruptive bursts out, something irruptive bursts in. | 1 |
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| | | The Columbia Guide to Standard American English. Copyright © 1993 Columbia University Press. |
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