▪ I. burst, v.
(bɜːst)
Pa. tense and pple. burst. Forms: α. (type berst, burst) 1 berstan, 3 bersten, (bursten), 4–5 berst(e, 5–6 barst, 6– burst. β. (type brest, brast, brust) 3–5 bresten, 4–5 breste, 4–6 brest, briste, (4 brusten), 5 bruste, 5–6 brust, bryste, brast, 6 braste, 9 dial. and arch. brast. pa. tense α. 1 bærst, 3 bearst, 4 berst, 3 barste, 5–6 barst, 6– burst, (8–9 incorrectly bursted). β. 3–7 brast, 4–6 braste, brest, 5 breste, (6 brust, brusted), 9 dial. and arch. brast. pl. α. 1 burston, 2–4 burste(n, 4–5 borsten, 5–6 barst, 6– burst. pa. pple. α. 1 borsten, 4–5 borsten, -un, 5 burstyn, (borsen, 6 Sc. bursin), 6–8 bursten, 6– burst, (8–9 incorrectly bursted, 9 Sc. bursen). β. 4–5 brosten, brusten, (4 brost, brast), 6 brasten, 6–7 brast, brust, 9 arch. brast, (9 north. dial. brossen, brosen).
[(1) A Common Teut. strong vb.: OE. berstan (pa. tense bærst, burston, pple. borsten) = OFris. bersta, OS. brestan (brast, bruston; brostan), (MDu., Du. berstan, barsten, LG. barsten, basten), OHG. brestan (MHG. brestan, Ger. bersten from LG.), ON. bresta, (brast, brustum; brostinn), (Sw. brista, Da. briste):—OTeut. *brestan, possibly from *brek-st-an, a derivative (intensive) of brek-an to break2.
(2) The earlier brest- of WGer. became by metathesis berst- in OE., Frisian, Du., and LG. (whence also it has passed into mod.Ger. in place of MHG. brest-). In Eng. this berst- mostly again became brest- in ME., partly perh. under Norse influence, whence the pa. pple. brosten still, in north. dial.; but this has since the 16th c. gone back to berst, changed by the disturbing influence of r to burst. So that we have the alternate series OTeut. and WGer. brest-, OE. berst-, ME. brest, mod.Eng. berst, burst. But the 15–16th c. had often brust and brast, barst in the present; and the north. dial. had brist, bryst, as in Danish.
(3) The original strong conjugation survived during the ME. period, with the typical forms, after metathesis, bresten, brast, brosten, but with much disturbance and mixture of forms in 14–15th c. In the 16th c. a very common form was brast for all the principal parts; but about the end of that century, burst (for all the parts) began to gain the ascendancy which it has since maintained, though the pa. tense was frequently brast in 17th and the pa. pple. bursten till 18th c. Various old forms survive dialectally, and in U.S. the pa. tense and pple. are frequently bursted, vulgarly busted.]
I. intr. To break or be broken suddenly.
† 1. a. To break suddenly, snap, crack, under violent pressure, strain, or concussion. Chiefly said of things possessing considerable capacity for resistance and breaking with loud noise; often of cords, etc., snapping under tension; also of spears, swords, etc., shivered in battle. Obs.
| α a 1000 Beowulf 818 Burston ban locan. a 1000 Byrhtnoð 284 (Gr.) Bærst bordes læriᵹ. 1297 R. Glouc. 460 Atte laste þoru stronge duntes hys suerd berst atuo. 1413 Lydg. Pylgr. Sowle v. xi. (1483) 102 Then enforcid hym soo sore to the weyght tyll the cordys borsten of the balaunce. a 1593 Marlowe Dido iv. iv, Was it not you [the tacklings of a ship] that hoised up these sails? Why burst you not? 1718 Pope Iliad xv. 545 As the tough string he drew, Struck by an arm unseen, it burst in two. |
| β 1340 Hampole Pr. Consc. 7014 Als smyths strykes on þe yren fast, Swa þat it brekes and brestes at þe last. c 1430 Syr Generides 44 8 The helm went of also, The laces brast even a twoo. 1566 W. Adlington Apuleius 7 The rope being olde & rotten brast in the middle & I fell down. 1577 Holinshed Chron. III. 809/1 There was good running and manie a speare brust. 1803 W. Rose Amadis 136 Brast each strong lance. |
† b. Of ships: To go to pieces. Obs.
| 1513 Bradshaw St. Werburgh (1848) 193 Incontinently the ship barst all in sondre. 1523 Ld. Berners Froiss. I. ccclvi. 574 Thre of their shyppes brast and went to wrake. |
† c. Of persons, in fig. phrase ‘it is better to bow than to burst’. Also: To perish (by hunger).
| a 1440 Ipomydon 1722 Thoughe he shulde for hungre brest. c 1450 in Babees Bk. (1868) 34 Often tyme it is betere to bow þan to berst. c 1450 Henryson Mor. Fab. 65 To bow at bidding, and bide not while thou brest. |
† d. fig. To cease, come to an end. Also (in OE.) said of an oath: To be broken. Obs.
| a 1100 Laws of K. Edw. §3 Ȝif þæt ᵹeswutelod wære oþþe him að burste. |
2. a. Now chiefly of a surface or thing with extended surface: To break suddenly when in a state of tension, to fly asunder or in pieces; to be broken by expansion of the contents. Of persons or animals: often as an imagined consequence of excess in eating or drinking, or of violent exertion. Also fig. (chiefly with allusion to the bursting of a bubble); now often colloq. with up.
| α 1535 Coverdale Bel. i. 27 This he put in y⊇ Dragons mouth and so y⊇ dragon barst in sonder. 1562 J. Heywood Prov. & Epigr. (1867) 90 Thus drinke we..tyll we burst. a 1600 Hooker Eccl. Pol. vii. xx. §5 Lest the very entrails of some..should thereat haply burst in sunder. 1709 Steele Tatler No. 40 ¶10 By an Accident of Firing a Piece of Ordnance, it burst, and kill'd 15 or 16 Men. 1713 Addison Guardian No. 159 His breast heaved as if it would have bursted. 1732 Pope Ess. Man i. 90 And now a bubble burst, and now a World! 1774 J. Bryant Mythol. II. 406 If I burst I don't care. I drink with a good will and a safe conscience. 1881 Daily News 1 Sept. 3/5 The boilers had not burst. |
| β a 1300 Cursor M. 16505 He brest in tua his buels all, vte at his wambe þai wrang. c 1340 Gaw. & Gr. Knt. 1166 With such a crakkande kry, as klyffes haden brusten. a 1400 Cov. Myst. (1841) 232 Myn hed doth ake, as it xolde brest. 1430 Lydg. Chron. Troy i. vi, This Bufo ryght anone Through myght ther of brusteth euen a twain. 1526 Skelton Magnyf. 2186 For laughter I am lyke to brast. 1558 Knox First Blast (Arb.) 40 Let them blowe til they brust. 1591 Spenser Bellay's Vis. vi, Poyson..Made him to swell, that nigh his bowells brust. 1865 B. Brierley Irkdale I. 12 Bring me another pint afore I brast wi' thinking. 1865 Swinburne Masque Q. Bersabe 16 He [a bird]..suddenly woxe big and brast. |
b. Said of boils, tumours etc.: To break the outer covering and discharge the matter. Of a bud: To break the envelope, open out. Of a cloud: To disperse in heavy rain (often fig.).
| c 1000 Sax. Leechd. I. 272 [Leᵹe þysse wyrte leaf] to þam sare hyt sceal berstan and halian. 1547–64 Bauldwin Mor. Philos. (Palfr.) x. 5 Stop the beginning, so shalt thou be sure All doubtfull diseases to swage and to cure: But if thou be carelesse and suffer them brast, Too late commeth plaister. 1776 Withering Bot. Arrangem. (1796) I. 360 Two stamens of the Bryum extinctorium..one ready to burst. 1807 Med. Jrnl. XVII. 9 The sac would go on increasing until it would burst. 1855 Tennyson Maud ii. i. 42 The heavens..should burst and drown in deluging storms The feeble vassals of wine and anger and lust. 1885 Daily News 16 July 5/2 When the cloud bursts. |
† c. To break up explosively. Obs. rare.
| c 1432–50 tr. Higden (1865) I. 319 White salte, contrary to the nature of other salte, whiche, beenge soluble in the fyre, brestethe and brekethe in the water. |
d. With up. To become ‘broken’ or bankrupt. Cf. bust v.2 c.
| 1848 W. Armstrong Stocks 9 If any firm or individual does not fulfill his obligations..he is unable to do so, or,..he has ‘burst up’. 1865 Dickens Mut. Fr. iii. xii, Then you think, Mrs. Lammle, that if Lammle got time, he wouldn't burst up?—To use an expression..which is adopted in the Money Market. |
3. a. Said hyperbolically, as a strong expresssion for ‘to be exuberantly full’ (cf. 12). Also with out.
| 1563 Homilies ii. Serm. Rogation Wk. (1859) 499 And thy presses shall brust with new wine. 1611 Bible Prov. iii. 10 Thy presses shall burst out with new wine. |
b. Of persons: To be unable to contain oneself. Chiefly in fut., or in phrases to be ready to burst, to be bursting. Const. with (information, envy, delight, etc.); also with inf. as ‘to be bursting to tell a secret’, i.e. with desire to tell it. Cf. 3.
| 1633 Ford Broken H. iv. ii. (1811) 305 Ere I speak a word I will look on and burst. 1649 Jer. Taylor Gt. Exemp. ii. xii. 45 The Pharisees could hold no longer, being ready to burst with envy. 1712 Steele Spect. No. 533 ¶2 Ready to burst with shame and indignation. 1732 Berkeley Alciphr. v. §13 One of these tame bullies ready to burst with pride and ill-humour. 1789 Wolcott (P. Pindar) Subj. for Paint. 65 She bursted with th' important secret soon. 1867 Froude Short Stud. (1872) I. 2 Most of us when we have hit on something..original, feel as if we should burst with it. 1884 West. Morning News 11 Sept. 4/4 Sir Richard..had been bursting..to let the news be known. |
† 4. fig. Of the heart: To ‘break’ by the shock or pressure of grief, or by the swelling of emotion.
| α a 1225 Ancr. R. 80 Hu stout ham þæt beoð..wiðuten hope of vtcome, and heorte ne mei bersten. 1393 Gower Conf. III. 311 Ha, herte, why ne wolt thou berst. 1593 Shakes. 3 Hen. VI, v. v. 59 No, no, my heart will burst, and if I speake. |
| β a 1300 Cursor M. 15956 Quen he himself it vnderstod, Almast his hert can brest. c 1386 Chaucer Frankl. T. 31 Have here my trouthe, til that myn herte bruste. 1535 Fisher Wks. i. 404 Hir harte..for very payne it myght haue brast. 1578 T. Proctor Gorg. Gallery, Lover in Distress, &c., O heauy hart..If thou shouldest brast..Then should I dye without reward. |
5. Said of a door. Now usually to burst open: to fly open suddenly.
| 1596 Spenser F.Q. i. viii. 4 No gate so strong, no locke so firme and fast, But with that piercing noise flew open quite, or brast. Mod. The door burst open, and a man rushed into the room. |
II. intrans. fig. (With adverbial extension expressing the nature of the action.)
6. To break forth into sudden activity, or manifestation of an inward force. Of persons: To break out into sudden action or forcible expression of feeling. Usually with out, forth. a. Const. in, with (a speech, a cry, or other mode of expression); also simply.
| α 1682 Dryden Mac Fl. 138 Long he stood..At length burst out in this prophetick mood. 1711 Addison Spect. No. 164 ¶5 She burst out in Tears. 1842 Tennyson Dora 155 And all at once the old man burst in sobs. 1848 W. K. Kelly tr. L. Blanc's Hist. Ten Y. I. 560 M. Henri Baud..burst out enthusiastically: ‘My father was a common man’. |
| β c 1450 Lonelich Grail lv. 317 Thanne with a swerd he owt braste, that in his hond he held wel faste. 1562 Pilkington On Abdias 284 They will brast out and declare their faith. 1596 Spenser F.Q. iii. iii. 19 The wisard..brusting forth in laughter, to her sayd. 1869 Waugh Yeth-Bobs ii. 33 He brast eawt again, as if his heart wur breighkin. |
b. Formerly with on. Often with vbl. n., to burst (out, forth) on weeping. Afterwards replaced by a, as to burst out (on) a-laughing, a-crying (now dial. or arch.); the prep. is now omitted in general use: to burst out laughing, crying, etc.
| c 1370 Robt. K. Cicyle 53 He smote hym..That mowthe and nose braste on blode. 1485 Caxton Chas. Gt. 44 Hys nose breste a blood habundauntly. 1564 Haward Eutropius vi. 57 Cesar..braste forthe on weepinge to beholde the heade of so worthye a manne. 1711 Addison Spect. No. 90 ¶7 One of the Ladies burst out a laughing. 1825 Bro. Jonathan III. 315 He burst out a-crying. 1836 Marryat Japhet xxxiii, The remembrance..made us both burst out a laughing. 1863 H. E. P. Spofford Amber Gods 126 The other girls burst out crying at the sight of the coffin. 1875 Jowett Plato (ed. 2) I. 84 The crew of his own trireme also burst out laughing. |
c. Const. into; also, formerly, with infinitive. Often with out, forth, e.g. † to burst (out, forth) to weep. In same sense, to burst into tears (influenced by some notion of 2). So to burst (out) into laughter, song, speech; to burst (out) into flame; of plants, to burst (out) into blossom, etc.
| α 1630 [see 16]. 1637 Milton Lycidas 74 When..we.. think to burst out into sudden blaze. 1709 Steele Tatler No. 58 ¶1 The Father burst into the following Words. 1716–8 Lady M. W. Montague Lett. I. xxxi. 105 She could not forbear bursting into tears. 1727 Swift Gulliver ii. viii. 163 Bursting at the same time into a flood of tears. 1802 Bloomfield Soldier's Home ii, I..rose at once, and bursted into tears. 1832 Tennyson Fatima v, My heart..Bursts into blossom in his sight. 1853 Arab. Nts. (Rtldg.) 661 The courtiers..could not avoid bursting into a violent fit of laughter. 1878 Huxley Physiogr. 78 The taper will burst again into full flame. |
| β c 1385 Chaucer L.G.W. 1031 With that word he brast out for to wepe. c 1400 Destr. Troy 9425 Deffibus..For bale of his brother brest out to wepe. 1528 More Heresyes iv. Wks. (1557) 255/2 Thei brast out in vyrulent and venimouse wordes. 1578 Timme Calvine on Gen. 132 They bruste forth into manifest rage. 1611 Speed Hist. Gt. Brit. ix. viii. (1632) 555 Heart-burnings betwixt the King and his Clergy, which..brast forth into a more fearfull flame. 1637 Valentine & O. 13 He..brast out into these speeches. |
III. Transitive (causative). Not in OE.
† 7. a. To break, snap, shatter suddenly. Obs. in general sense.
| α 1297 R. Glouc. 437 Þe suerde hii nome..& barste mony a sselde. 1362 Langl. P. Pl. A. vii. 165 He beot so þe Boyes he barst neih heore Ribbes. 1590 Marlowe 2nd Pt. Tamburl. v. i. 71 Whose chariot-wheels have burst the Assyrians' bones. 1596 Shakes. Tam. Shr. i. Induct. 8 You will not pay for the glasses you haue burst. 1715 in Sc. Pasquils (1868) 393 Dee'l knock, Dee'l sink, Dee'l ryve and burst him. |
| β 1340 Hampole Pr. Consc. 1787 Alle thyng it brestes in sonder. c 1385 Chaucer L.G.W. 2413 And with a wawe brostyn was his stere. 1480 Robt. Devyll 16 Tenne noble stedes backes he dyd brust. 1508 Fisher Wks. i. 60 Whan he is ones fallen to the grounde he is brasten all to peces. 1509 Barclay Ship of Fooles (1570) 170 God..geueth thee not his beard to draw and brast. 1563–87 Foxe A. & M. (1684) II. 85 He..brast them [the images] all down in pieces. 1855 Singleton Virgil I. 192 Drear winter with its cold would brast the rocks. a 1881 Rossetti Ballads & Sonn. 130 All the locks Had the traitor riven and brast. |
† b. to burst down: to break down violently.
| c 1440 [see bursting vbl. n.]. |
† c. fig. To break or violate (a law, a principle). Obs. rare.
| 1600 Fairfax Tasso v. lv. 85 If Rinaldo..haue the sacred lore of war so brust. |
d. poet. To interrupt, put a sudden end to.
| 1842 Tennyson St. Sim. Styl. 175 With hoggish whine they burst my prayer. 1859 ― Enid 1120 Many a..heel against the pavement echoing burst their drowse. |
8. a. To disrupt, shatter, cause to fly to pieces (a surface, or thing having extended surface).
In mod. use the tendency is to restrict the word to cases in which a containing envelope is ruptured by the expansion (or the too great size) of the contents.
| 1382 Wyclif Dan. xiv. 26 He made gobettis, and ȝaue in to mouthe of the dragoun, and the dragoun is borstun. 1535 Coverdale Luke v. 37 Y⊇ new wyne barsteth y⊇ vessels and runneth out. 1591 Shakes. 1 Hen. VI, i. i. 64 The losse of those great Townes Will make him burst his Lead, and rise from death. 1736 Butler Anal. i. i. Wks. 1874 I. 14 Birds and insects bursting the shell their habitation. 1775 Haffenden in Phil. Trans. LXV. 340 The place where the leaden pipe is bursten. 1791 Smeaton Edystone L. §174 Nothing..but..gun⁓powder, could have burst and dispersed the materials of the spire in the manner it had done. 1817–8 Cobbett Resid. U.S. (1822) 42 The buds of a Lilac..are almost bursted, which is a great deal better than to say, ‘almost burst’. |
b. To rupture (something) by internal force, or by pressure, a blow, etc., upon it when inflated or distended. to burst a blood-vessel: to cause its rupture by exertion, etc., or simply to suffer the rupture of a vessel. to burst one's sides: imagined as a result of excessive laughter. to burst one's buttons (through over-feeding or exertion).
| 1712 Arbuthnot John Bull (1755) 47 You would have burst your sides to hear him talk of politicks. 1796 Pegge Anonym. (1809) 354 We were ready to burst our sides. 1863 Kingsley Water-bab. v. 185 He..played leap-frog with the town-clerk till he burst his buttons. 1865 M. R. Lahee Billy o' Yeps T. 10 Lads laughin' fit to brast their soides. Mod. Take care you do not burst your gun. |
† c. fig. to burst up: to shatter, destroy. Obs.
| 1597 Daniel Civ. Wares vii. ii, Who else had burst-up Right to come t' his right. |
† d. To ruin financially = break v. 11. Obs.
| 1712 Arbuthnot John Bull ii. iv, I therefore hold it advisable that you continue the Lawsuit, and burst him at once. |
e. To spend (money) extravagantly; esp. to spend it ‘on the burst’ or ‘on the spree’. slang.
| 1892 J. Murdoch From Australia & Japan 151 It sounds odd to be told that a fellow's conscientious scruples are lax enough to permit him to ‘burst’ $6 50c. on the very much off-chance of ever seeing a cent of his investment again. 1908 Westm. Gaz. 31 Mar. 10/3 Two natives..returned to visit their old relatives at home, and burst a little money on the spree. |
9. a. to burst bonds, barriers, etc. Now said only of the person or thing confined within; formerly with wider meaning as in 7. Now chiefly fig.
| α c 1325 E.E. Allit. P. B. 963 Þe grete barrez of þe abyme he barst vp at onez. 1535 Coverdale Jer. v. 5 These..haue..bursten the bondes in sonder. 1824–9 Landor Imag. Conv. (1846) II. 3 My madness..would burst asunder the strong swathes. 18.. Hymns Anc. & Mod. ‘Come see the place’ ii, Who burst the bands of death and hell. |
| β c 1340 Cursor M. 7203 (Fairf.) His bandis al he brest in twa. c 1440 York Myst. xxxvii. 196 And brosten are alle our bandis of bras. 1548 Udall, etc. Erasm. Par. Mark v. 4 To braste all his chaynes and fetters in pieces. 1596 Spenser F.Q. i. v. 31 Furies which their chaines have brast. |
b. Of a river or water: to burst its banks.
| 1860 Tyndall Glac. i. §8. 58 A subglacial lake had burst its boundary. |
† c. transf. To force one's way across (a frontier) Obs.; also, to burst (the enemy's) ranks. poet. or rhetorical.
| 1652 C. Stapylton Herodian viii. 67 The Frontiers they had brast. 1847 Tennyson Princ. iv. 483 Clad in iron, burst the ranks of war. |
d. To separate (continuous stationery) into its constituent sheets, esp. automatically.
| 1966 R. R. Arnold et al. Introd. Data Processing v. 82/2 The machine bursts the one-part form into individual units. 1967 Oxford Computer Explained 36 Documents may, if required, be burst on a high-speed unit. 1982 What's New in Computing Nov. 90/2 It is the only machine in its price category that will burst a 7 part printout. 1985 Neat Ideas Catal. Spring 3/1 The pnk 610 can burst forms from a width of 4{pp} (102 mm) to 15{pp} (382mm). |
† 10. to burst the heart: said of grief or violent emotions. Also of persons, to burst one's heart. So to burst one's brain: to take or occasion excessive thought. Obs.
| c 1385 Chaucer L.G.W. 1298 Ffor which methynkyth brostyn is myn herte. 1555 Let. in Strype Eccl. Mem. III. App. I. 162 Though thou wouldest brast thine heart about it. 1587 Golding De Mornay xxiv. 373 Bookes which busteth not our braines about Mooneshine in the water. 1591 Spenser Ruines of T. 518 Nigh with griefe..my heart was brust. |
11. a. To cause (the body) to swell till it bursts. Chiefly as an imagined result of over-feeding or violent exertion; often refl.
| 1530 Palsgr. 757/1, I thruste out ones guttes, or burste one. Je accreue. 1667 Milton P.L. x. 635 Cramm'd and gorged, right burst With suck'd and glutted offal. 1719 De Foe Crusoe (1840) I. xiii. 227 Water, with which..he would have burst himself. 1839 Cumberl. & Westmoreland Dial. 31 He hed welly brosen his sel wie runnin. |
b. causatively.
| a 1802 ‘Broomfield Hill’ xiv. in Child Ballads ii. (1884) 394/2 Ye need na burst your gude white steed Wi racing oer the howm. a 1822 ‘Fair Marjory’ xvii. ibid. iii. 121/2 It's first he burst the bonny black, An syne the bonny broun. |
12. hyperbolically. To fill to overflowing.
| 1697 Dryden Virg. Georg. i. 74 That Crop..bursts the crowded Barns. |
13. to burst a door, gate, etc.: to force it open by a violent thrust, so as to break the door or its fastenings. Also burst open.
| 1591 Shakes. 1 Hen. VI, i. iii. 28 Open the Gates..Or wee'le burst them open. a 1700 Dryden Desp. Lover Misc. Wks. 1760 II. 118 The bounce burst ope the door. 1721 De Foe Mem. Cavalier (1840) 113 They burst open the gate. 1847 Tennyson Princ. vi. 59 She spoke, and..Descending, burst the great bronze valves. 1864 ― Boadicea 64 Burst the gates and burn the palaces. |
† 14. To cause to burst out, abroad. Obs.
| c 1400 Destr. Troy 865 Sho brast out bright water at hir brode een. a 1593 Marlowe Mass. at Paris i. ii, To burst abroad those never-dying flames. |
IV. Intransitive senses implying movement accompanied by the bursting of barriers.
These uses mostly correspond with those of break, branch VII, but express more strongly the notion of sudden violence.
15. a. To issue forth suddenly and copiously by breaking an enclosure, or by overcoming resistance. Usually with out, forth, or other adv.
| a 1300 Cursor M. 11704 Vnder þe rote a well vte-brast. 1375 Barbour Bruce xv. 481 Blude brist out at voundis vyde. 1480 Caxton Chron. Eng. ccxxii. 216 One of hem..smote the same hugh vpon the hede that the brayn brest out. 1563 Foxe A. & M. (1684) I. 259/1 The blood brast incontinent out of the Nose of the King. 1578 Timme Calvine on Gen. 199 The waters under the earth braste not up, nor the waters aboue the Heauens fall down upon us. 1847 Tennyson Princ. iv. 453 A river level with the dam Ready to burst and fill the world with foam. 1852 ― Elaine 516 Half his blood burst forth. |
b. transf. and fig. Of tears, cries, etc.: To issue suddenly in spite of repressive effort. Of light, sounds, etc.: To issue suddenly from a source; to become visible or audible with startling suddenness and clearness; often const. on (the eye, ear, etc.). Of the sun: to burst from, burst through (the clouds); often with out, forth. Also of news, events, sights, truths, etc.: to burst upon (a person): to be revealed with overwhelming suddenness to.
| c 1250 Gen. & Ex. 1808 Get held he wið ðis angel fast, Til ðe dauing up it brast. a 1300 Cursor M. 18916 Þar come a sune Vte o þe air al bristand dune. c 1386 Chaucer Doctor's T. 234 The teeres brast out of hir eyghen tuo. 1508 Fisher Wks. i. 165 The sounde of a grete trumpe braste out. 1591 Spenser Petrarch's Vis. iii, Sudden flash of heavens fire out brast. 1678 Bunyan Pilgr. i. 73 What sighs and groans brast from Christians heart. 1826 F. Cooper Mohicans xvii, Such a yell..as seldom bursted from human lips before. 1867 M. E. Herbert Cradle L. vii. 168 On turning a sharp corner, Hebron burst upon them. |
¶ to burst upon a view. (rare.)
| c 1854 Stanley Sinai & Pal. i. 69 The Israelites, coming down through that very valley, burst upon that very view. |
c. fig. Of thoughts, emotions, latent forces, etc.: To find utterance or manifestation suddenly, esp. after long repression or concealment. Usually with out, forth; const. into (the result).
| 1542 Becon Christm. Banq., Wks. (1843) 81 Charity..brasteth out into good works whensoever it seeth an occasion given. 1591 Shakes. 1 Hen. VI, iv. i. 183 Had the passions of thy heart burst out..we should haue seene decipher'd there..rancorous spight. a 1603 in Liturg. Services Q. Eliz. (1847) 680 Defections in Ireland..in the end brast out into open rebellion. 1810 Scott Lady of L. ii. xxxiv, Anguish of despair Burst, in fierce jealousy, to air. |
† d. Of an eruptive disease. Also of the body affected by it: To break out into sores or pimples.
The latter sense appears to have existed in OE., where however it probably originated from 1 or 2. Cf. quot. a 1000 under bursting ppl. a.
| 1552 Huloet Breake oute, or braste oute, as a mannes face doth with heate. a 1593 H. Smith Wks. (1866) I. 301 The leprosy which brast out of the forehead. |
e. To spring forth, as a plant, shoot, etc. (Usually implying the overcoming of restraint.)
| a 1300 Cursor M. 10723 Bath flour and frut suld þar-of brest [v.r. briste]. 1578 Banister Hist. Man iv. 60 The fift [Muscle] likewise brusteth forth of Fibula. 1835–6 Todd Cycl. Anat. & Phys. I. 120/2 The radicle that bursts from the fecundated seed of a plant. |
† f. To emanate, originate from. Obs.
| a 1300 Cursor M. 10059 But o þe grace þat of hir brestes, Of al þis werld bett er þe brestes. 1567 Jewel Def. Apol. (1611) 409 All these mischiefes brast out first from the High Throne of the Pope of Rome. |
16. Of a tempest, conflagration, disease, or the like. Chiefly with out, forth.
| 1542 Henry VIII Declar. Scots 192 Things of suche enormitie do brest out and appere. 1546 Langley Pol. Verg. De Invent. i. xvi. 29 a, Diseases, that brest furthe on euery syde. 1579 Tomson Calvin Serm. Tim. 250/2 We do but heap vp wood, and the wrath of God brasteth out at a blow. 1630 Lord Banians 87 The windes in the bowels of the earth..brast forth into eruptions. 1792 Anecd. W. Pitt I. x. 203 The flame of war..was preparing to burst out in Europe. 1808 R. Porter Trav. Sk. Russ. & Swed. (1813) I. i. 11 War burst around him, and he fell in combat. 1848 Macaulay Hist. Eng. I. 665 A tempest burst forth, such as had not been known since that great hurricane. |
17. To make a sudden overwhelming assault on; to rush violently and suddenly over.
| a 1300 Cursor M. 21400 Brathli on his fas he brast. 1862 Stanley Jew. Ch. (1877) I. ix. 180 Immense swarms of hornets burst upon the country with unusual force. |
18. poet. to burst away: to rush away impetuously. Also (of a bird) to burst on the wing: to start off into flight.
| 1809 Campbell Gert. Wyom. iii. iii, Wild bird bursting on the wing. 1859 Tennyson Elaine 1237 The wild Queen..burst away to weep. 1864 ― En. Ard. 635 A crew that landing burst away In search of stream or fount. |
19. To force a passage impetuously through (a barrier, physical or moral, the ememy's ranks, a crowd of people).
| a 1300 Cursor M. 12872 Opin he sau þe liftes seuen, þe fader steuen þar thoru it brast. 1837 Newman Par. Serm. (ed. 3) I. xx. 305 There are times when a thankful heart bursts through all Forms of prayer. 1853 Kingsley Hypatia xxii. 288 Bursting desperately through the women who surrounded him, the monk vanished. |
20. To break forcibly into, come suddenly and impetuously into (a room, a country, etc.); also with adv. in. Similarly to burst up (from below).
| 1563 Foxe A. & M. (1684) I. 397/1 Thorow windows and doors..they brast in to the Pope. 1600 Fairfax Tasso ii. xxvii. 25 He broke the throng, and into presence brast. 1742 Richardson Pamela III. 128 In burst the pert Slut, with an Air of Assurance. 1798 Coleridge Anc. Mar. ii. v, We were the first that ever burst Into that silent sea. 1813 M. Edgeworth Patron. I. v. 98 The flames burst in from the burning trellis. 1835 Marryat Jacob Faithf. i, My father burst up from the cabin. |
☛Phrase-key:—To burst abroad, 14; b away, 18; b banks, 9 b; b a blood-vessel, 8 b; b bonds, 9; b one's brains, 10; bud b, 2 b; b one's buttons, 8 b; cloud b, 2 b; b a door, 13; b down, 7 b; b forth, 6 b, 6 c, 15, 15 b, 15 c, 16; b from, 15 b, 15 f; b a frontier, 9 c; b the heart, 10; b for hunger, 1 c; b into, 6 c, 15, 20; b on, 6 b, 15 b, 17; b on the wing, 18; b open, 5, 13; b out, 3, 6 b, 6 c, 14, 15, 15 b, 15 d, 16; b ranks, 9 c; b one's sides, 8 b; b through, 15 b, 19; b up, 2, 8 c, 20; b upon, 15 b; b with, 6 a.
▪ II. burst, n.
(bɜːst)
Forms: 1 byrst, 1–4 berst, birst, 5 byrst, 3– burst.
[In sense 1 repr. OE. byrst (berst) = OHG. brust:—OTeut. *brusti-z, f. pa. pple. stem of brestan to burst. This seems to have become obs. about the middle of 14th c.; the modern n. was apparently f. the verb. in 16th c. Cf. the parallel brest, brist.]
I. † 1. Damage, injury, harm; loss. Obs.
| c 1000 ælfric Ex. xxii. 6 Ȝilde þone byrst þe þæt fyr on⁓tende. c 1205 Lay. 1347 Brutus at bræc al buten burstan [c 1275 harme]. Ibid. 1610 Þe king Goffar iseih his burst [c 1275 lure]. c 1300 in Wright Lyric P. iv. 24 That burst shal bete for hem bo. c 1320 Syr Bevis 1929 A-dede hire ete al ther ferst That she ne dede him no berst. c 1420 Chron. Vilod. 330 Þen in all þe toþer worldelyche burste. c 1430 How Gd. Wyf tauȝte Dau. in Babees Bk. (1868) 45 The more nede hyt make or the grettyr byrst. |
II. Senses formed anew from the verb.
2. a. An act of bursting; the result of this action.
| 1611 Shakes. Cymb. iv. ii. 106 The snatches in his voice And bursts of speaking were as his. 1836 Macgillivray Humboldt's Trav. iii. 52 The Peak of Teneriffe exhibited a lateral burst, preceded by tremendous earthquakes. 1885 G. Meredith Diana of Crossw. I. iv. 107 When beech-buds were near the burst. |
b. fig. burst-up: the failure, collapse, of an organization or scheme.
| 1879 Daily News 22 Sept. 2/1 A speedy burst-up of the whole agricultural system. |
c. House-breaking, burglary. slang.
| 1857 ‘Ducange Anglicus’ Vulg. Tongue 3 Burst, burglary. 1863 Sessions' Paper Apr. 786, I asked Simpson where they had done the burst—that is what is commonly called house-breaking. |
3. a. A sudden and violent issuing forth. Chiefly of light and sounds. So also a burst of flame, a burst of fish (in local use).
| 1610 Shakes. Temp. ii. i. 311 We heard a hollow burst of bellowing Like Buls. 1671 Milton Samson 1651 Down they came, and drew The whole roof after them, with burst of thunder, Upon the heads of all. 1816 Southey Lay of Laur., Dream vi, Burst after burst the innocuous thunders brake. 1854 Brewster More Worlds ii. 17 The gloomy landscape whose varied beauties a burst of sun-light has revealed. 1857 National Mag. II. 197 Terminating in a glorious burst of acclamatory harmony. |
b. A sudden opening on the view.
| 1798 Coleridge Tears in Solit. 215 This burst of prospect. 1814 Jane Austen Mansf. Park viii. (D.) Here is a fine burst of country. 1875 Browning Inn Album 4 Not so the burst of landscape surging in. |
4. a. An explosion, eruption, outbreak.
| 1649 Milton Eikon. Wks. 1738 I. 403 He..kept them up, the only Army in his three Kingdoms, till the very burst of that Rebellion. a 1719 Addison (J.) Imprison'd fires, in the close dungeons pent, Roar to get loose, and struggle for a vent..Till with a mighty burst whole mountains fall. 1790 Wedgwood in Phil. Trans. LXXX. 309 As often as the heat was at or near the boiling point of the acid, frequent..bursts or explosions happened. 1870 Pall Mall. G. 17 Nov. 12 Out of 8,245 shells and shrapnel fired with this fuze..there were 128 premature bursts. |
b. spec. Of gunfire, esp. from an automatic weapon.
| 1893 in Funk's Stand. Dict. 1902 Times Hist. War in S. Afr. 1899–1902 II. 159 The effect of this sudden burst—the first experience of the massed fire of modern rifles in the war—did not stay the advance. 1916 King's Roy. Rifle Corps Chron. 1915 41 The Companies in the trenches fired short bursts of rapid fire. 1942 T. Rattigan Flare Path iii. 158 O.K., Kyle. Shoot. Give us the five-second burst. 1964 Times 21 Aug. 8/1 A Soviet sentry fired..a second burst as the car was leaving the area. |
c. Physics. (See quot. 1960.)
| 1933 Physical Rev. XLIV. 779/1 The time intervals between the occurrence of bursts of ionization..were measured. 1942 J. D. Stranathan Particles xii. 509 The cosmic ray phenomenon responsible for..excessive momentary ionizations is referred to as a burst. Ibid. 519 It has been remarked that the cosmic ray burst is probably identical with the shower. 1949 Austral. Jrnl. Sci. Res. A. II. 214 (title) Bursts of solar radiation at metre wavelengths. 1960 Cooke & Markus Electronics & Nucleonics Dict. 59/1 Burst. 1. A sudden increase in the strength of a signal being received from beyond line-of-sight range. It is believed due to meteors passing through the upper atmosphere and momentarily affecting the ionized layers that reflect radio waves back to earth. 2. An exceptionally large pulse observed in an ionization chamber, signifying the arrival of several ionizing particles simultaneously. It may be caused by a cosmic-ray shower. |
5. A vehement outbreak (of emotion or its expression).
| 1751 Johnson Rambl. No. 141 ¶10 A mistake which had given rise to a burst of merriment. 1775 Burke Amer. Tax. Wks. II. 408 From the whole of that grave multitude there arose an involuntary burst of gratitude and transport. 1838 Thirlwall Greece V. xliv. 370 A burst of ill humour, which it would have been wiser to suppress. Mod. The statement was received with a burst of laughter. |
6. a. A great and sudden exertion of activity, a vigorous display of energy; a ‘spurt’. Phrase, at a (one) burst.
| 1862 Abp. Trench Eng. Past & Pr. iii. 97 With Chaucer English literature had made a burst, which it was not able to maintain. 1865 M. Arnold Ess. Crit. i. (1875) 8 The burst of creative activity in our literature. 1876 Green Short Hist. vii. §5 (1882) 393 The great poetic burst for which this intellectual advance was paving the way. |
b. Horsemanship. A hard run, a gallop without a check.
| 1789 Loiterer 14 Feb. 6 Pompous accounts of sharp bursts, and long chaces. 1810 Scott Lady of L. i. iv, So shrewdly, on the mountainside, Had the bold burst their metal tried. 1852 Thackeray Esmond i. iv. (1876) 29 During a burst over the Downs after a hare. 1868 R. E. Egerton-Warburton Hunt. Songs lvi. (1883) 155 How keen their emulation in the bustle of the burst, When side by side the foremost ride. |
c. Hence, in other sports; spec. a short spurt, etc., at greater speed than that employed for the remainder of the course.
| 1824 Mirror III. 290/2 The dogs..pursue it..with great impetuosity, which sportsmen term a burst. 1925 ‘Ian Hay’ Paid with Thanks xvi. 211 They..proceeded to row courses, half courses..and short bursts. 1957 Duncan & Bone Oxf. Pkt. Bk. Athletic Training (ed. 2) iii. 22 Bursts, a sprint put into the middle of a period of striding or jogging. |
7. colloq. A prolonged bout of drunkenness, a ‘spree’. Also a big feed, a ‘blow out’. (See also bust n.3)
| 1849 T. T. Johnson Sights in Gold Region xix. 183 Bill and Gus had come over from the Middle Fork for a particular, general and universal ‘burst’. 1881 Mrs. Praed Policy & Pass. I. 288 When..his men go on the burst. 1881 Cheq. Career 356 A good week's burst. |
▪ III. burst, ppl. a.
(bɜːst)
Also arch. brast.
[pa. pple. of burst v.; see bursten ppl. a.]
1. See senses of burst v. † a. Shattered, broken, Obs. b. Rent by force when in a state of tension; exploded, torn open. Also with advs., as burst-out, burst-up.
| 1812 Byron Ch. Har. i. lxxviii, Clinging darts, and lances brast. 1824 Miss Mitford Village Ser. i. (1863) 138 Working over the weak irregular burst-out button-hole. 1885 Stevenson Dynamiter 190 You behold me sitting here like a burst drum. 1900 Engineering Mag. XIX. 746/1 The burst-up condition of the decks..showing..the behaviour of the lyddite shells. |
† 2. spec. Ruptured, suffering from hernia. Also as quasi-n. Obs.
| 1580 Baret Alv. B. 1569 He that is burst, or hath his bowels fallen down into his coddes. 1611 Cotgr., s.v. Bergamasque, a trusse for a burst man. 1631 R. Byfield Doctr. Sabb. 14 [It] appeares also by the example of the burst, and of the bastard. |