skyrocketing

IPA/ˈskaɪˌrɒk.ɪt/
KK[skˈaɪrˌɑkətɪŋ]IPA/ˈskaɪˌrɑː.kɪt/

skyrocketing — verb

  • skyrocketingpresent simple I / you / we / they
  • skyrocketings3rd person singular
  • skyrocketinging-ing form
  • skyrocketingedpast simple

1. to rise or increase at a dramatically fast rate; also, to achieve fame or succes

1.verbintransitiveB2
Definition

to rise or increase at a dramatically fast rate; also, to achieve fame or success with remarkable speed

Example

After the factory closed, unemployment in Diego's town skyrocketed to nearly thirty percent.

skyrocket to + percentage

Kenji could not believe how much his health insurance premium had skyrocketed this year.

Common collocations
  • skyrocketing costs
  • skyrocketing prices
  • skyrocket overnight
  • skyrocket from X to Y
Synonyms
  • soar

    suggests graceful, sustained upward movement; less dramatic and often more positive in tone

  • surge

    emphasizes a sudden powerful wave-like increase, common for crowds and emotions

  • spike

    a sharp but often brief upward jump, especially visible on a graph

  • shoot up

    informal phrasal verb equivalent; common in everyday speech

Antonyms
  • plummet

    to fall straight down very fast

  • plunge

    to drop suddenly and steeply

  • nosedive

    to fall sharply, especially of prices or performance

Grammar Patterns

skyrocket + from X to Y

skyrocket + to + number/level

Usage Note

Subject is almost always a measurable quantity: prices, costs, sales, rates, or numbers. Distinguish from 'increase' or 'rise': skyrocket always implies a sudden, dramatic jump, not a slow climb.

Common Mistakes

Prices skyrocketed down after the announcement.
Prices plummeted after the announcement.
'skyrocket' only means going up; use 'plummet' or 'plunge' for going down.

2. to fly or be thrown upward through the air at very high speed, like a rocket bei

2.verbtransitive / intransitiveC1
Definition

to fly or be thrown upward through the air at very high speed, like a rocket being launched

Example

The rescue team fired a flare that skyrocketed above the dark ocean waves.

skyrocket + above + location

Aisha ducked as burning embers skyrocketed from the bonfire into the night air.

Synonyms
  • blast off

    specifically for rockets or spacecraft launching under their own power

  • catapult

    implies being thrown forcefully by a mechanism; not necessarily upward

  • shoot up

    informal equivalent for rapid upward physical movement

Antonyms
  • drop

    to fall downward, typically without propulsion

  • descend

    to move downward gradually and under control

Grammar Patterns

skyrocket + into/above + location

skyrocket + off + surface

Usage Note

Distinguish from sense 1 (RISE RAPIDLY): this sense describes literal physical movement through the air, typically of objects propelled by force. Rare in everyday conversation; sense 1 is far more common.

skyrocketing — noun

Word family

  • skyrocket
    verbB2
  • skyrocket
    nounC1

Synonym discussion

Sense: verb/1

Skyrocket, soar, surge, spike, and shoot up all describe rapid increases, but they differ in imagery and typical use. Skyrocket suggests the most dramatic, almost explosive rise — like a firework, it implies a steep, attention-grabbing jump (prices skyrocketed overnight). Soar evokes graceful, sustained upward movement, often used for ongoing trends (the economy is soaring) and carries a positive tone. Surge emphasizes a sudden, powerful wave — like water rushing in — and is common for crowds, emotions, or temporary spikes in data (a surge in demand). Spike describes a sharp, needle-like peak on a graph, typically brief and often followed by a drop (interest rates spiked then fell). Shoot up is the most informal of the group, common in everyday speech (my rent shot up again).

soar ↗surge ↗spike ↗shoot up ↗

Common collocations

Nouns

Adverbs

Phrases

  • cause something to skyrocket
  • see something skyrocket

Prepositions

Etymology

Old NorseItalianFrenchEnglish

A compound of 'sky' (from Old Norse ský, meaning 'cloud') and 'rocket' (from Italian rocchetta, a small firework, via French roquette). The word first appeared in English in the late 1600s as a noun for a firework that shoots into the sky. The verb sense — meaning 'to rise as rapidly as a skyrocket' — developed in the late 1800s, drawing on the dramatic image of a firework's fast upward flight.