Phrase guide

Cambrian explosion

name · noun · 2 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • Received-Pronunciation: /ˈkam.bɹɪ.ən ɪkˈspləʊ.ʒən/
  • General-American: /ˈkæm.bɹi.ən ɛkˈsploʊ.ʒən/
  • Australia: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.

1

name

Meaning 1

The relatively rapid appearance, during the Cambrian Period around 541 million years ago, of most major animal phyla, as demonstrated in the fossil record.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Qualifier: evolutionary biology

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: biological big bang

Antonyms: none provided

2

noun

Meaning 2

The rapid appearance of anything.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: broadly

Examples

  • There has been a Cambrian explosion of cryptocurrencies.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

History

Etymology

Of unclear origin, inspired by George Gaylord Simpson's description of "explosive" evolution. The earliest known use is in a BSCS high school biology textbook written in 1961 under the direction of paleobotanist Wilson Steward.

Across languages

Translations

43 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Arabic: انفجار كامبري — the rapid appearance, around 541 million years ago, of most major animal phyla
  • Azerbaijani: kembri partlayışı — the rapid appearance, around 541 million years ago, of most major animal phyla
  • Basque: Kanbriarreko leherketa — the rapid appearance, around 541 million years ago, of most major animal phyla
  • Catalan: explosió cambriana — the rapid appearance, around 541 million years ago, of most major animal phyla
  • Chinese: Cambria po̍k-hoat — the rapid appearance, around 541 million years ago, of most major animal phyla
  • Chinese Mandarin: 寒武纪大爆发 (Hánwǔjì dàbàofā) — the rapid appearance, around 541 million years ago, of most major animal phyla
  • Czech: Kambrická exploze — the rapid appearance, around 541 million years ago, of most major animal phyla
  • Danish: Kambriske Eksplosion — the rapid appearance, around 541 million years ago, of most major animal phyla
  • Dutch: Cambrische explosie — the rapid appearance, around 541 million years ago, of most major animal phyla
  • Esperanto: kambria eksplodo — the rapid appearance, around 541 million years ago, of most major animal phyla
  • Finnish: kambrikauden räjähdys — the rapid appearance, around 541 million years ago, of most major animal phyla
  • French: explosion cambrienne — the rapid appearance, around 541 million years ago, of most major animal phyla
  • Galician: explosión cámbrica — the rapid appearance, around 541 million years ago, of most major animal phyla
  • German: kambrische Explosion — the rapid appearance, around 541 million years ago, of most major animal phyla
  • German: kambrische Artenexplosion — the rapid appearance, around 541 million years ago, of most major animal phyla
  • German: kambrische Radiation — the rapid appearance, around 541 million years ago, of most major animal phyla
  • Hebrew: הפיצוץ הקמבריוני — the rapid appearance, around 541 million years ago, of most major animal phyla
  • Hindi: कैम्ब्रियाई विस्तार (kaimbriyāī vistār) — the rapid appearance, around 541 million years ago, of most major animal phyla
  • Hungarian: kambriumi robbanás — the rapid appearance, around 541 million years ago, of most major animal phyla
  • Indonesian: letusan Kambrium — the rapid appearance, around 541 million years ago, of most major animal phyla
  • Indonesian: radiasi Kambrium — the rapid appearance, around 541 million years ago, of most major animal phyla
  • Italian: esplosione cambriana — the rapid appearance, around 541 million years ago, of most major animal phyla
  • Japanese: カンブリア爆発 — the rapid appearance, around 541 million years ago, of most major animal phyla
  • Korean: 캄브리아기 폭발 (kambeuriagi pokbal) — the rapid appearance, around 541 million years ago, of most major animal phyla
  • Lithuanian: Kambro sprogimas — the rapid appearance, around 541 million years ago, of most major animal phyla
  • Norwegian Bokmål: den kambriske eksplosjon — the rapid appearance, around 541 million years ago, of most major animal phyla
  • Norwegian Nynorsk: den kambriske eksplosjonen — the rapid appearance, around 541 million years ago, of most major animal phyla
  • Persian: انفجار کامبرین — the rapid appearance, around 541 million years ago, of most major animal phyla
  • Polish: eksplozja kambryjska — the rapid appearance, around 541 million years ago, of most major animal phyla
  • Portuguese: explosão cambriana — the rapid appearance, around 541 million years ago, of most major animal phyla
  • Portuguese: explosão do Cambriano — the rapid appearance, around 541 million years ago, of most major animal phyla
  • Romanian: explozia cambriană — the rapid appearance, around 541 million years ago, of most major animal phyla
  • Russian: кембрийский взрыв (kembrijskij vzryv) — the rapid appearance, around 541 million years ago, of most major animal phyla
  • Russian: взрыв скелетной фауны (vzryv skeletnoj fauny) — the rapid appearance, around 541 million years ago, of most major animal phyla
  • Serbo-Croatian: Kambrijska eksplozija — the rapid appearance, around 541 million years ago, of most major animal phyla
  • Serbo-Croatian: Камбријумска експлозија — the rapid appearance, around 541 million years ago, of most major animal phyla
  • Slovak: kambrická explózia — the rapid appearance, around 541 million years ago, of most major animal phyla
  • Spanish: explosión cámbrica — the rapid appearance, around 541 million years ago, of most major animal phyla
  • Spanish: radiación evolutiva del Cámbrico — the rapid appearance, around 541 million years ago, of most major animal phyla
  • Swedish: kambriska explosionen — the rapid appearance, around 541 million years ago, of most major animal phyla
  • Turkish: Kambriyen patlaması — the rapid appearance, around 541 million years ago, of most major animal phyla
  • Ukrainian: кембрійський вибух (kembrijsʹkyj vybux) — the rapid appearance, around 541 million years ago, of most major animal phyla
  • Vietnamese: bùng nổ kỷ Cambri — the rapid appearance, around 541 million years ago, of most major animal phyla