cloud

American  

[kloud] / klaʊd /

noun

• clouds
  plural

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.

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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)

• clouds,
  present (3rd person singular)
• clouded,
  past participle,  past
• clouding
  present participle

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)

• clouds,
  present (3rd person singular)
• clouded,
  past participle,  past
• clouding
  present participle

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

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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.

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cloud More Idioms  

More idioms and phrases containing cloud

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

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Synonym Usage

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

Derived Forms

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

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• clouds
  plural

Participles

• clouding
  present
• clouded
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• cloud
  simple
• clouds
  simple
• have clouded
  perfect
• has clouded
  perfect
• am clouding
  progressive
• are clouding
  progressive
• is clouding
  progressive
• have been clouding
  perfect progressive
• has been clouding
  perfect progressive

Past

• clouded
  simple
• had clouded
  perfect
• was clouding
  progressive
• were clouding
  progressive
• had been clouding
  perfect progressive

Future

• will cloud
  simple
• will have clouded
  perfect
• will be clouding
  progressive
• will have been clouding
  perfect progressive

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

See Examples For:

cloud clouds clouded clouding

She added that there was a temptation to look at the Sun through the cloud but even that could harm the eyes.

From BBC ● Aug. 10, 2026

Zuckerberg recently teased the idea of launching a cloud computing business to directly monetize its investments in data-center infrastructure.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 10, 2026

Azure sits at the center of enterprise AI adoption, while Microsoft can monetize AI through cloud infrastructure, Office and its broader software ecosystem.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 10, 2026

Data is uploaded to Flock's cloud and can be shared with subscribers.

From Barron's ● Aug. 9, 2026

Then, as the cloud began to move west as well as north, he took still more pictures.

From "Mountain of Fire" by Rebecca E. F. Barone

Mr. Chandler’s admiration for Grossman is great and justified, although at times it clouds his judgment.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 10, 2026

Most of us have seen photos of the first atomic blasts—the ever-expanding mushroom clouds, the fireballs, the vast devastation—that would end World War II and forever change our lives.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 7, 2026

This largely acts to prevent rain clouds building up.

From BBC ● Aug. 6, 2026

An international team of atmospheric scientists and wildfire specialists monitors these unusual clouds.

From Science Daily ● Aug. 5, 2026

Pop built fires all around the edges of our field, hoping the clouds of smoke would scare the grasshoppers away.

From "The Seven Wonders of Sassafras Springs" by Betty G. Birney

Yet the resumption of fighting has clouded the outlook, especially among manufacturers coping with tariffs, higher energy prices and supply disruptions.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 24, 2026

It is unacceptable that a public institution already so clouded in secrecy either chooses to or must rely on a private consulting firm.

From Slate ● Jul. 15, 2026

The pitch-black venue was also clouded in thick smoke, and the singer could not find Breeze, despite shouting her name, he said.

From Barron's ● Jul. 13, 2026

His roughly $16 million restoration of the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool became a national news story when algae blooms clouded the water and pieces of the pool’s new coating floated to the surface.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 4, 2026

When she spoke, her breath clouded in the air before her.

From Anya and the Nightingale by Sofiya Pasternack

Today, severe corneal clouding often requires a full corneal transplant.

From Science Daily ● May 28, 2026

But no one who has worked in late-night television in recent years can dispute how financial challenges are clouding the format’s future.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 21, 2026

The markets got an unwelcome reminder today that the war in Iran isn’t over, clouding a picture that’s recently been dominated by sunny earnings reports.

From Barron's ● May 4, 2026

Smartphones and streaming have since revolutionized home entertainment, while clouding the future of movie theaters and leading to the virtual extinction of the physical video-rental shops that used to be a staple of American towns.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 11, 2026

Shay’s eyes narrowed, confusion clouding her face, as if her memories of the underground prison didn’t fit in with the rest of her pretty worldview.

From "Uglies" by Scott Westerfeld

Related Words

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