cloud

American  

[kloud] / klaʊd /

noun

1. a visible collection of particles of water or ice suspended in the air, usually at an elevation above the earth's surface.

   Synonyms:

   vapor

2. any similar mass, especially of smoke or dust.

3. a dim or obscure area in something otherwise clear or transparent.

4. a patch or spot differing in color from the surrounding surface.

5. anything that obscures or darkens something, or causes gloom, trouble, suspicion, disgrace, etc.

6. a great number of insects, birds, etc., flying together.

   a cloud of locusts obscuring the sun.

   Synonyms:

   army, crowd, host, throng, multitude, horde, swarm

7. Digital Technology. Usually the cloud any of several, often proprietary, parts of the internet that allow online processing and storage of documents and data as well as electronic access to software and other resources.

   More and more software companies are encouraging users to store their work in the cloud.

---

adjective

Digital Technology.

1. of or relating to cloud computing.

   cloud software; cloud servers.

2. relating to or doing business on the internet.

   Google and other cloud companies.

verb (used with object)

1. to overspread or cover with, or as with, a cloud or clouds.

   The smoke from the fire clouded the sun from view.

2. to overshadow; obscure; darken.

   The hardships of war cloud his childhood memories.

3. to make gloomy.

4. (of distress, anxiety, etc.) to reveal itself in (a part of one's face).

   Worry clouded his brow.

5. to make obscure or indistinct; confuse.

   Don't cloud the issue with unnecessary details.

   Synonyms:

   muddle, distort

6. to place under suspicion, disgrace, etc.

7. to variegate with patches of another color.

verb (used without object)

1. to grow cloudy; become clouded.

2. (of a part of one's face) to reveal one's distress, anxiety, etc..

   His brow clouded with anger.

idioms

1. on a cloud, exceedingly happy; in high spirits.

   On the night of the prom the seniors were on a cloud.

2. under a cloud, in disgrace; under suspicion.

   After going bankrupt he left town under a cloud.

3. in the clouds,

   1. in a condition of absent-mindedness; lost in reverie.

   2. impractical.

      Their schemes are usually up in the clouds.

cloud British  

/ klaʊd /

noun

1. a mass of water or ice particles visible in the sky, usually white or grey, from which rain or snow falls when the particles coagulate See also cirrus cumulonimbus cumulus stratus

2. any collection of particles visible in the air, esp of smoke or dust

3. a large number of insects or other small animals in flight

4. something that darkens, threatens, or carries gloom

5. jewellery a cloudlike blemish in a transparent stone

6. (modifier) of or relating to cloud computing

   a cloud application

7. not in contact with reality

8. 1. under reproach or suspicion

   2. in a state of gloom or bad temper

9. informal elated; very happy

---

verb

1. to make or become cloudy, overcast, or indistinct

2. (tr) to make obscure; darken

3. (tr) to confuse or impair

   emotion clouded his judgment

4. to make or become gloomy or depressed

5. (tr) to place under or render liable to suspicion or disgrace

6. to render (liquids) milky or dull or (of liquids) to become milky or dull

7. to become or render mottled or variegated

cloud Scientific  

/ kloud /

1. A visible body of very fine water droplets or ice particles suspended in the atmosphere at altitudes ranging up to several miles above sea level. Clouds are formed when air that contains water vapor cools below the dew point.

2. A distinguishable mass of particles or gas, such as the collection of gases and dust in a nebula.

---

cloud More Idioms  

More idioms and phrases containing cloud

• head in the clouds
• on cloud nine
• silver lining, every cloud has
• under a cloud

---

Related Words

Cloud, fog, haze, mist differ somewhat in their figurative uses. Cloud connotes especially daydreaming: His mind is in the clouds. Fog and haze connote especially bewilderment or confusion: to go around in a fog ( haze ). Mist has an emotional connotation and suggests tears: a mist in one's eyes.

Other Word Forms

• cloudless
  adjective
• cloudlessly
  adverb
• cloudlessness
  noun
• cloudlike
  adjective
• intercloud
  verb (used with object)

Etymology

Origin of cloud

First recorded before 900; Middle English; Old English clūd “rock, hill”; akin to clod, Greek gloutós “buttock”; see gluteus ( def. )

Explanation

A cloud is a clump of water vapor that you can see in the sky. Clouds are sometimes white and puffy, and other times so big and gray that they completely block the sun. Clouds form when air rises and cools and the moisture in it condenses into a visible form. Any similar billowy mass is also a cloud, like a cloud of smoke over your campfire or a cloud of dust after your car peels out of the driveway. If you're gloomy or morose, someone might say there's a cloud over you — a figurative cloud of sadness. On the other hand, if you're "on cloud nine," you couldn't be happier.

Example Sentences

Chicago had one of the most confusing offseasons in recent memory and it got even stranger in the week before the season when it released Van Lith and added Cloud.

From Los Angeles Times • May 8, 2026

Cloud company Cerebras Systems could be the biggest of the year so far.

From Barron's • May 8, 2026

Cloud company Cerebras Systems could be the biggest of the year so far.

From Barron's • May 8, 2026

Its Google Cloud unit posted $20 billion in first-quarter revenue, a 63% year-over-year increase.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 30, 2026

The big glass window revealed the glittering Cloud Nests encasing the Arcanum, and she hoped she'd have the best view of the floating cities.

From "The Marvellers" by Dhonielle Clayton

Related Words

• darkness
• fog
• gloom
• mist
• puff
• smog
• smoke
• steam
• vapor
• veil