upheaval

From upheave +‎ -al.

• (US) IPA^(key): /ʌpˈhi.vəl/

• Audio (Southern England):

  (file)

• Hyphenation: up‧heav‧al

upheaval (countable and uncountable, plural upheavals)

1. Disruptive change, from one state to another.
   • 2023 March 8, “Network News: Carstairs shut for main line upgrade”, in RAIL, number 978, page 11:

     Scotland's bottleneck junction between the West and East Coast main lines at Carstairs will be the site of major upheaval until the end of May, while £164 million worth of improvements are carried out.

2. The process of being heaved upward, especially the raising of part of the earth's crust.
3. A sudden violent upset, disruption or convulsion.
   • 2011 September 2, “Wales 2-1 Montenegro”, in BBC‎^[1]:

     Since that upheaval Wales have won just once in seven games, beating Northern Ireland in the Nations Cup last May.

• seismic shift

• axis of upheaval