burgeon

Burgeon is a verb meaning to begin to grow or increase rapidly; it can also describe something that begins to flourish or expand suddenly. In modern usage, it is often applied to plants, populations, economies, or organizations. The verb can be used intransitively (The city burgeoned) or transitively (The city burgeoned into a metropolis).

As a noun, burgeon refers to a bud or sprout, especially in botanical contexts, though the noun sense is now rare in ordinary usage.

Etymology: Burgeon derives from Old French bourgeon meaning "bud, sprout." The word entered English in the Middle Ages, and the sense of rapid growth developed as a metaphorical extension of the bud image.

Usage notes: Common collocations include burgeon into, burgeon rapidly, or burgeon with. The related adjective burgeoning describes something that is growing quickly, as in "a burgeoning industry." In contemporary prose, burgeoning is more frequent as an attributive adjective than the noun or verb form in formal writing.

Examples: The town burgeoned into a bustling city after new industries arrived. Demand for the product burgeoned during the late 1990s. The startup burgeoned into a multinational company within a decade.