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Rush

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rush¹

  • /ɹʌʃ/
  • /ɹʊʃ/ Northern England

Sounds like Rush · Rhymes with -ʌʃ

Where it comes from

Perhaps from Middle English ruschen, russchen (“to rush, startle, make a loud rushing noise”), from Old English hrysċan (“to jolt, startle”), from Proto-West Germanic *hurskijan, from Proto-Germanic *hurskijaną (“to startle, drive”), from *hurskaz (“fast, rapid, quick”), from Proto-Indo-European *ḱers- (“to run, hurry”).

Cognate with Old High German hursken (“to hurry, speed, incite, accelerate”), Old English horsċ (“quick, quick-witted, clever”), Old Frisian rosk, rosch (“quick, rapid, sudden”).

etymology note

An alternative etymology traces rush via Middle English ruschen (“to rush”) from Old English *rūscian (“to rush”) from Proto-Germanic *rūskōną (“to rush, storm, be fierce, be cruel”), a variant (with formative k) of Proto-Germanic *rūsōną (“to be cruel, storm, rush”) from Proto-Indo-European *(o)rewə- (“to drive, move, agitate”), making it akin to Old High German rosc, rosci (“quick”), Middle Low German rûschen (“to rush”), Middle High German rūschen, riuschen (“to rush”) (German rauschen (“to rush”)), North Frisian ruse (“to rush”), Middle Dutch ruuscen (“to make haste”), Middle Dutch rūsen (“to rush”) (Dutch ruisen (“to rush”)), Danish ruse (“to rush”), Swedish rusa (“to rush”). Compare Middle High German rūsch (“a charge, rush”). Influenced by Middle English russhen (“to force back”) from Anglo-Norman russher, russer from Old French ruser, rëuser.

Alternatively, according to the OED, perhaps an adaptation of Anglo-Norman russher, russer (“to force back, down, out of place, by violent impact", "to pull out or drag off violently or hastily”), from Old French re(h)usser, ruser (although the connection of the forms with single -s- and double -ss- is dubious; also adopted in English ruse; French ruser (“to retreat, drive back”)), from an assumed Vulgar Latin *refūsāre and Latin refundō (“I cause to flow back”), although connection to the same Germanic root is also possible. More at rouse.

noun rushes

  1. A sudden forward motion. A gentleman of his train spurred up his horse, and, with a violent rush, severed him from the duke.
  2. A surge. A rush of business can be difficult to handle effectively for its unexpected volume.
  3. General haste. Many errors were made in the rush to finish.
  4. A rapid, noisy flow. a rush of water; a rush of footsteps
  5. A sudden attack; an onslaught.
  6. The strategy of attacking an opponent with a large swarm of weak units, rather than spending time developing their abilities.
  7. The act of running at another player to block or disrupt play. a rush on the quarterback
  8. dated A rusher; a lineman. the center rush, whose place is in the center of the rush line
  9. A sudden, brief exhilaration, for instance the pleasurable sensation produced by a stimulant. The rollercoaster gave me a rush.
  10. A regulated period of recruitment in fraternities and sororities. rush week
  11. A person attempting to join a fraternity or sorority as part of a rush. At the end of rush, the fraternities vote on who they want to extend invitations to join, and the rushes can then make their selection from the bids they get. Some rushes get bids from multiple fraternities, while others do not get bids from any.
  12. US, dated A perfect recitation.
  13. A roquet in which the object ball is sent to a particular location on the lawn.

verb rushes · rushing · rushed

  1. intransitive, transitive To hurry; to perform a task with great haste, often not properly or without thinking carefully. rush one's dinner; rush off an email response
  2. intransitive To flow or move forward rapidly or noisily. armies rush to battle; waters rush down a precipice.
  3. intransitive To dribble rapidly.
  4. intransitive, transitive To run directly at another player in order to block or disrupt play.
  5. transitive To cause to move or act with unusual haste. Don't rush your client or he may withdraw.
  6. intransitive To make a swift or sudden attack.
  7. transitive To swiftly attack without warning. A detachment of cavalrymen rushed the enemy's position.
  8. slang, transitive To attack (an opponent) with a large swarm of units.
  9. transitive To transport or carry quickly. The shuttle rushes passengers from the station to the airport.
  10. intransitive, transitive To roquet an object ball to a particular location on the lawn.
  11. intransitive, transitive To attempt to join a fraternity or sorority, often involving a hazing or initiation process.
  12. US, dated, slang To recite (a lesson) or pass (an examination) without an error.
  13. intransitive To play at a faster tempo than one is supposed to or than the other musicians one is playing with, or to inadvertently gradually increase tempo while one is playing.

Similar: fly, scramble, get a move on, hasten, haul, hurtle, bustle, haul ass, haul one's ashes, hie, hump it, hurry

adjective

  1. not comparable Performed with, or requiring urgency or great haste, or done under pressure, especially if therefore done badly. a rush job

rush²

  • /ɹʌʃ/
  • /ɹʊʃ/ Northern England

Sounds like Rush · Rhymes with -ʌʃ

Where it comes from

From Middle English risshe, rusch, risch, from Old English rysċ, rysċe, risċ, risċe, from a merger of Proto-West Germanic *riskijā, from Proto-Indo-European *(H)resg- (“to weave”) and Proto-West Germanic *ruskijā, possibly borrowed from Latin rūscum (“butcher's broom”), of unknown origin + *-jā (animal and plant suffix).

Cognates include West Frisian risk, Dutch rus (“bulrush”), Norwegian Bokmål rusk, dialectal Norwegian ryskje (“hair-grass”). Further cognates include Russian ро́зга (rózga).

noun rushes

  1. Any of several stiff plants of the genus Juncus, or the family Juncaceae, having hollow or pithy stems and small flowers, and often growing in marshes or near water.
  2. The stem of such plants used in making baskets, mats, the seats of chairs, etc.
  3. The merest trifle; a straw. [W]hat occaſion haſt thou to give up Eccleſdoun-Caſtle to John Bull? his Friendſhip is not vvorth a Ruſh, give it me and I'll make it vvorth the vvhile.
  4. A wick.

Rush³

Where it comes from

* As an English surname, from the noun rush (“waterside plant, plant in marshes”).

* Also as an English surname, from the archaic noun rush (“beehive”), from French ruche.

* As an Irish surname, from Ó Ruis (literally “descendant of Ros”), a name from ros (“wood”). Sometimes also translated from Ó Luachra due to confusion with luachair (“rushes”), see Loughrey.

* Also as an Irish surname, translated/Anglicized from Ó Fuada (literally “descendant of Fuada”), compare Foody, from the noun fuad (“haste”).

* As a German surname, Americanized from Rüsch, Ruesch, Rusch.

proper noun Rushs · Rushes

  1. countable, uncountable A surname from English
  2. countable, uncountable An English surname originating as an occupation for someone who made things from rushes.
  3. countable, uncountable A surname from Irish
  4. countable, uncountable A surname from German
  5. countable, uncountable A male given name.
  6. countable, uncountable A coastal town in Fingal, County Dublin, Ireland.
  7. countable, uncountable An unincorporated community in El Paso County, Colorado, United States.
  8. countable, uncountable An unincorporated community in Boyd County and Carter County, Kentucky, United States.
  9. countable, uncountable A town in Monroe County, New York, United States.
  10. countable, uncountable A number of townships, in Illinois, Michigan, Missouri, Ohio and Pennsylvania, United States, listed under Rush Township.
  11. abbreviation, countable, ellipsis, uncountable Ellipsis of Rush County.Rush County

RUSH⁴

proper noun

  1. A dialect of the programming language PL/I.

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