well 5 BrE AmE ( also well up ) verb [intransitive] literary
[ Date: 1300-1400 ; Origin: well 'to cause to boil' (11-15 centuries) , from Old English wellan ]
1 . if a liquid wells or wells up, it comes to the surface of something and starts to flow out:
I felt tears well up in my eyes.
2 . if a feeling wells or wells up in you, you start to feel it strongly:
Anger welled up within him.