Definition of Groundswell

1. Noun. (nautical) A broad undulation of the open ocean, often as the result of a distant disturbance ¹

2. Noun. (context: by extension) A broadly-based shifting of public opinion ¹

¹ Source: wiktionary.com

Definition of Groundswell

1. [n -S]

Lexicographical Neighbors of Groundswell

groundsheet
groundsheets
groundsill
groundsills
groundskeeper
groundskeepers
groundskeeping
groundsman
groundsmen
groundspeed
groundstaff
groundstate
groundstates
groundstroke
groundstrokes
groundswell (current term)
groundswells
groundswoman
groundswomen
groundward
groundwards
groundwater
groundwater level
groundwaters
groundwood
groundwoods
groundwork
groundworks
groundworm
groundworms

Literary usage of Groundswell

Below you will find example usage of this term as found in modern and/or classical literature:

1. To the Cape for Diamonds.: A Story of Digging Experiences in South Africa by Frederick Boyle (1873)
"... proclaimed—Mr. Gilfillan stops the rioters—A groundswell of disorder next day—Threats sent to ..."

2. Sir Thomas Browne's Works: Including His Life and Correspondence by Thomas Browne, Simon Wilkin (1835)
"If others answer, mint and basil, though they sprout largely, yet they will hardly afford flowers, much less seed;—senecio, or groundswell, seems best to ..."

3. The Open Air by Richard Jefferies (1885)
"To-day the groundswell was more active, the waves closer together, not having had time to forget the force of the extinct gale. Yet the sea looked calm as a ..."

4. The California earthquake of April 18, 1906: Report of the state earthquake by Andrew Cowper Lawson, Harry Fielding Reid (1908)
"On the days of observation at the clam patch the sea was calm, except for a moderate groundswell, so that the normal equilibrium of the water-surface ..."

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