soared

IPA/sɔːr/
KK[sˈɔrd]IPA/sɔːr/

soared — verb

  • soaredpresent simple I / you / we / they
  • soareds3rd person singular
  • soareding-ing form
  • soarededpast simple

1. (of a number, amount, value, or level) to climb sharply over a short period — fo

1.verbintransitiveB2
Definition

(of a number, amount, value, or level) to climb sharply over a short period — for example, house prices jumping thirty percent in one year, or daily case numbers tripling within a week.

Example

Coffee prices soared after a poor harvest in Brazil last spring.

soar + after + cause noun

Ramón watched in shock as his electricity bill soared by forty percent.

soar + by + percentage

Common collocations
  • prices soared
  • costs soared
  • temperatures soared
  • demand soared
  • profits soared
Synonyms
  • skyrocket

    more informal; same dramatic-rise meaning

  • surge

    emphasises a sudden powerful movement, can be temporary

  • rocket

    very informal; vivid headline-style usage

  • jump

    neutral register; smaller magnitude than soar

Antonyms
  • plummet

    the dramatic-fall counterpart

  • plunge

    sharp drop, often with emotional weight

Grammar Patterns

soar + by/to/from + number

prices soared

Usage Note

Subject is usually a measurable quantity (prices, rates, profits, demand, temperatures). Frequently followed by 'by + percentage' or 'from X to Y' to quantify the rise. Distinguish from sense 2: sense 1 is metaphorical numerical rise; sense 2 is literal physical height.

Common Mistakes

My salary soared a little this year.
My salary rose a little this year.
'soar' implies a sharp, dramatic jump; small increases need 'rise' or 'go up'.
Sales soared down after the scandal.
Sales plummeted after the scandal.
'soar' only goes up; use 'plummet' or 'crash' for sharp falls.

2. (of a bird, glider, or aircraft) to ride a current of warm rising air and stay i

2.verbintransitiveB2
Definition

(of a bird, glider, or aircraft) to ride a current of warm rising air and stay in the sky for a long time without flapping the wings or burning fuel.

Example

Two bald eagles soared above the canyon for nearly an hour without flapping.

soar + above + place

Defne pointed at the kite that soared over the beach all afternoon.

soar + over + place

Common collocations
  • soar above
  • soar overhead
  • soar on thermals
  • eagles soaring
Synonyms
  • glide

    smooth flight without flapping; can apply to small descents too

  • hover

    stay in one spot in the air; soar covers wider sky

  • sail

    literary; same effortless-flight image

Antonyms
  • flap

    the active wing motion soaring avoids

  • land

    the end of flight

Grammar Patterns

soar + above/over/through + place

Usage Note

Subject is typically a bird with wide wings (eagle, hawk, vulture, condor) or an engineless aircraft (glider, hang-glider, paraglider). The verb implies effortless flight using thermals, not powered flight. Distinguish from sense 3: sense 2 is the literal flight; sense 3 is reaching great height in general.

Common Mistakes

The jet plane soared across the sky.
The jet plane sped across the sky.
'soar' suggests gliding without engine power; jets fly under power.
A sparrow soared from branch to branch.
A sparrow flitted from branch to branch.
small birds that flap quickly do not soar; the verb requires sustained gliding.

3. (of a tall structure such as a building, mountain, or tower) to rise so far upwa

3.verbintransitiveC1
Definition

(of a tall structure such as a building, mountain, or tower) to rise so far upward that the top dominates everything around it.

Example

The new tower soared above every other building in the financial district.

soar + above + comparison

Henry stared at the cliffs that soared straight out of the sea like a wall.

soar + adverb + out of + place

Common collocations
  • mountains soaring
  • spires soaring
  • cliffs soaring
  • soaring ceilings
Synonyms
  • tower

    very close meaning; can take 'over' more readily

  • rise

    neutral, less dramatic than soar

  • loom

    adds a threatening or oppressive feeling

Antonyms
  • squat

    low and wide rather than tall

  • crouch

    of structures, hugging the ground

Grammar Patterns

soar + above/over + landmark

soar + into + the sky

Usage Note

Subject is a tall fixed object — buildings, towers, spires, cliffs, mountains, trees. The verb describes static vertical extent, not movement; the structure does not actually rise, but it appears to thrust upward. Often paired with 'above', 'into', or measurements.

Common Mistakes

A small fence soared along the road.
A tall wall soared along the road.
the subject must be genuinely impressive in height; small objects cannot soar.
The room soared with the ceiling.
The ceiling soared above the room.
only the tall thing itself can be the subject.

4. (of a performer, athlete, or creative work) to deliver a performance so impressi

4.verbintransitiveC1
Definition

(of a performer, athlete, or creative work) to deliver a performance so impressive that it lifts everyone watching — for example, a dancer in the lead role of a ballet, or a young pianist in a competition final.

Example

Élise soared in the final act, drawing a standing ovation from the entire theatre.

soar + in + part of performance

The young violinist soared during the second movement and the judges gave top marks.

soar + during + part of performance

Common collocations
  • performance soared
  • lead role soared
  • solo soared
  • speech soared
Synonyms
  • shine

    stand out positively in a performance; less elevated than soar

  • excel

    neutral, achievement-focused; lacks the emotional lift of soar

  • triumph

    winning element added; soar is about quality more than outcome

Antonyms
  • flop

    perform badly; informal

  • stumble

    underperform in a notable moment

Grammar Patterns

soar + in + performance

spirits soar

Usage Note

Subject is either a person delivering a performance or a specific creative work (a role, a speech, a song, a chapter). The metaphor borrows the effortless-flight image of sense 2 to suggest something rising above the ordinary. Most common in arts criticism, sports commentary, and competition reports.

Common Mistakes

The student soared at the maths test by getting six out of ten.
The student did well on the maths test.
'soar' requires a genuinely outstanding result, not a moderate one.
His sadness soared after the bad news.
His sadness deepened after the bad news.
soar implies positive uplift; negative feelings sink or deepen.

soared — noun

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: verb/1

All five describe a sharp upward movement in numbers, but they part company on register and shape. 'Soar' is the most neutral and writable choice — newspapers and reports use it without sounding casual. 'Skyrocket' and 'rocket' carry headline energy and are best in informal or vivid writing; 'rocket' is the most colloquial. 'Surge' adds the sense of a single powerful push and can describe a brief, wave-like spike rather than a sustained climb, so it suits demand or crowds as well as prices. 'Jump' is the lightest of the five — a smaller, often one-step rise that does not imply a long climb. So a careful writer might say 'oil prices soared throughout the year', 'demand surged on launch day', and 'shares jumped two percent after the announcement' — three different sizes of rise, three different verbs.

soar ↗skyrocketsurge ↗rocket ↗jump ↗

Common collocations

Nouns

Adverbs

Phrases

  • soar above expectations
  • soar to new heights
  • send something soaring

Prepositions

Etymology

LatinOld FrenchMiddle EnglishEnglish

English borrowed the verb in the late 1300s from Old French 'essorer', meaning to expose to the air or send up to fly. The French word itself was built from Latin 'ex-' (out) and 'aura' (a breath of air), so the whole image is 'lift up on the breeze'. The original meaning was the bird-and-glider one (sense 2); the metaphorical uses for buildings, performances, and rising numbers grew naturally out of that picture of effortless upward flight.