flare up
phr. v..phr. v.. to suddenly start again or become more active, like a fire, an illness, or an argument.
phr. v.. to recur or intensify suddenly after a period of dormancy or low activity; often used for medical conditions, social unrest, or physical combustion.
My back pain tends to flare up when it is cold.
Violence began to flare up in the city after the new laws were announced by the government.
Although the chronic infection appeared to be in remission, the symptoms would occasionally flare up during periods of extreme physical exhaustion.
often used with medical conditions like 'arthritis' or 'allergies', or with social 'tension' and 'violence'.
use the image of a fire suddenly getting bigger to help students remember the meaning for abstract things like anger or skin rashes.
His anger flared it up.His anger flared up.this phrasal verb is intransitive when describing a situation or condition, so it does not take a direct object between the verb and particle.