springspring2 ●●○ verb (past tense sprang /spræŋ/ also sprung /sprʌŋ/ , past participle sprung) [intransitive] 
1
to jump or move suddenly and quickly in a particular direction: 
He turned off the alarm and sprang out of bed. He sprang to his feet (=stood up suddenly) and rushed after her. The lid of the box sprang open/shut (=suddenly opened or shut). The branch sprang back/up (=moved quickly back to its original position or shape) and hit him in the face.THESAURUSjump, skip, hop, leap► see thesaurus at jump12spring to mind if someone or something springs to mind, you immediately think of him, her, or it: Pam’s name springs to mind as someone who could do the job.3spring into action/spring to life to suddenly become active or start doing things: The whole school springs into action at Homecoming.4spring to somebody’s defense to immediately help someone who is being attacked or criticized: Molly sprang to her daughter’s defense.5spring a leak if a boat or a container springs a leak, it begins to let liquid in or out through a crack or holespring for phrasal verb informal to pay for something: Carol said she’d spring for lunch.spring from phrasal verb to be caused by something: health problems that spring from living in a cold, wet countryspring on phrasal verb informal to tell someone something or ask him/her to do something when s/he does not expect it and is not ready for it: I’m sorry to have to spring this on you.spring up phrasal verb to suddenly appear or start to exist: All along the railroad, new towns sprang up.
1 to jump or move suddenly and quickly in a particular direction: He turned off the alarm and sprang out of bed. He sprang to his feet (=stood up suddenly) and rushed after her. The lid of the box sprang open/shut (=suddenly opened or shut). The branch sprang back/up (=moved quickly back to its original position or shape) and hit him in the face.THESAURUSjump, skip, hop, leap► see thesaurus at jump12spring to mind if someone or something springs to mind, you immediately think of him, her, or it: Pam’s name springs to mind as someone who could do the job.3spring into action/spring to life to suddenly become active or start doing things: The whole school springs into action at Homecoming.4spring to somebody’s defense to immediately help someone who is being attacked or criticized: Molly sprang to her daughter’s defense.5spring a leak if a boat or a container springs a leak, it begins to let liquid in or out through a crack or holespring for phrasal verb informal to pay for something: Carol said she’d spring for lunch.spring from phrasal verb to be caused by something: health problems that spring from living in a cold, wet countryspring on phrasal verb informal to tell someone something or ask him/her to do something when s/he does not expect it and is not ready for it: I’m sorry to have to spring this on you.spring up phrasal verb to suddenly appear or start to exist: All along the railroad, new towns sprang up.
