a disturbance of the normal condition of the atmosphere, manifesting itself by winds of unusual force or direction, often accompanied by rain, snow, hail, thunder, and lightning, or flying sand or dust.
a heavy fall of rain, snow, or hail, or a violent outbreak of thunder and lightning, unaccompanied by strong winds.
Also called violent storm. Meteorology. a wind of 64–72 miles per hour (29–32 meters per second).
a violent military assault on a fortified place, strong position, or the like.
a heavy or sudden volley or discharge.
a storm of criticism; a storm of bullets.
a violent disturbance of affairs, as a civil, political, social, or domestic commotion.
a violent outburst or outbreak of expression.
a storm of applause.
Informal. storm window.
(of the wind or weather) to blow with unusual force, or to rain, snow, hail, etc., especially with violence (usually used impersonally with it as subject).
It stormed all day.
to rage or complain with violence or fury.
He stormed angrily at me.
to deliver a violent attack or fire, as with artillery.
The troops stormed against the garrison.
to rush to an assault or attack.
The tanks stormed towards the city.
to rush angrily.
to storm out of a room.
to subject to or as if to a storm.
The salesman stormed them with offers.
to utter or say with angry vehemence.
The strikers stormed their demands.
to attack or assault (persons, places, or things).
to storm a fortress.
a violent weather condition of strong winds, rain, hail, thunder, lightning, blowing sand, snow, etc
( as modifier )
storm signal
storm sail
( in combination )
stormproof
meteorol a violent gale of force 10 on the Beaufort scale reaching speeds of 55 to 63 mph
a strong or violent reaction
a storm of protest
a direct assault on a stronghold
a heavy discharge or rain, as of bullets or missiles
short for storm window
US equivalent: tempest in a teapot. a violent fuss or disturbance over a trivial matter
to capture or overrun by a violent assault
to overwhelm and enthral
to attack or capture (something) suddenly and violently
(intr) to be vociferously angry
(intr) to move or rush violently or angrily
(intr; with it as subject) to rain, hail, or snow hard and be very windy, often with thunder or lightning
A low-pressure atmospheric disturbance resulting in strong winds accompanied by rain, snow, or other precipitation and often by thunder and lightning.
A wind with a speed from 103 to 117 km (64 to 73 mi) per hour, rating 11 on the Beaufort scale.
First recorded before 900; (noun) Middle English, Old English; cognate with Dutch storm, German Sturm, Old Norse stormr; (verb) Middle English stormen, derivative of the noun (compare obsolete sturme, Middle English sturmen, Old English styrman, denominative verb from the same Germanic base as storm ); akin to stir 1
A storm is what happens when the earth's atmosphere is disturbed. If the weather report says that a storm is on the way, you might want to carry an umbrella — or just stay at home and watch movies. Storms range from the windstorm that blows branches off your tree to the snowstorm that buries your neighborhood under two feet of the white stuff. It's a verb too: "It began to storm outside, and the rain beat down on the windows." Figuratively, you might even storm angrily: "My sister was so mad that she stormed around her room, kicking things." Something controversial can also cause a figurative storm, or uproar.
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
“When you’ve got competitive races, you’ve got a lot of money flowing into competitive races, and I think that perfect storm has helped enable a lot of new records to be shattered this election cycle.”
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 31, 2026
As if Southern California hasn’t seen enough wild weather, a new storm is moving in just in time for Halloween.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 30, 2026
The company has said repeatedly that customer funds will be covered and that the firm is strong enough to weather the storm.
From BBC ● Oct. 30, 2026
Lagarde insisted throughout the year she wouldn’t depart until the economy was on solid footing, often using the analogy of a captain who doesn’t leave his ship in a storm.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 29, 2026
Nineteenth-century séance attendees had the jaw-dropping experience of watching delicate lady mediums taken over by coarse sailor’s spirits and cursing up a storm direct from Summerland.
From "American Spirits" by Barb Rosenstock
Earlier in October a Kelvin wave and strengthened tides due to Tropical Storm Rachel brought flooding to multiple beach communities.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 29, 2026
“You know, sometimes doors open and I just walk through them and go, ‘Why not?’” said King, who spearheads the candy project and founded Storm King Productions and Comics.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 27, 2026
High winds caused a passenger plane to momentarily leave the runway at Birmingham Airport as Storm Boelo brought disruption across the West Midlands on Sunday.
From BBC ● Oct. 26, 2026
Baines died as Storm Boelo swept across Scotland, causing flooding, travel disruption and power cuts over the weekend and into Monday.
From BBC ● Oct. 26, 2026
"Not if you were holding hot tea. Plus, you're forgetting Storm."
From "Eleanor & Park" by Rainbow Rowell
Residents say they still experience outages during heavy storms, as Laos's own electricity infrastructure is outdated and the state utility is heavily in debt.
From Barron's ● Nov. 1, 2026
Powerful storms, landslides, and other extreme events can bend or displace trees, making the capacity to regain an appropriate posture essential for their resilience.
From Science Daily ● Nov. 1, 2026
This is in stark contrast to last week which saw areas buffeted by a cluster of storms developed by a powerful Atlantic jet stream.
From BBC ● Oct. 30, 2026
Over the last week we had the first two named storms of the season - Austen and Boelo - which gave much of the UK significant and much needed rain.
From BBC ● Oct. 30, 2026
Mrs. Kluck gives Mama one last glare and storms off, leaving us all looking dazedly at each other.
From "A Place at the Table" by Saadia Faruqi and Laura Shovan
Late Monday, dozens of people, including the mother of a Novi Sad disaster victim, stormed Informer's premises and disrupted its broadcast.
From Barron's ● Oct. 27, 2026
But the Bengals stormed back to win 35-13, with Joe Burrow throwing for four touchdowns and 292 yards as the Ravens suffered a second straight loss.
From BBC ● Oct. 26, 2026
A new round of protests was under way Thursday, including a large gathering at Place de la Bastille, the site of the prison that was stormed and torn down in the French Revolution.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 8, 2026
Shares of Intel, Advanced Micro Devices and other hardware companies stormed higher on Monday in a show of intense investor appetite for the artificial-intelligence trade.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 21, 2026
The tingling sensation I normally got in my fingers now stormed through my whole body, like just being near him would make every story funnier and more memorable.
From "Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky" by Kwame Mbalia
Only rarely do the dignified characters allow their emotions to come storming out.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 23, 2026
Shares of Intel, Advanced Micro Devices and other hardware stocks were storming higher on Monday in a show of intense investor appetite for the artificial-intelligence trade.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 21, 2026
Instead of a W, Western Michigan took the L. Excited Wolverine fans hopped the railings to join the most embarrassing field storming in college football history.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 9, 2026
Another potential scenario, Shpaizman said, is one resembling the storming of the US Capitol by supporters of President Donald Trump on January 6, 2021, as they tried to stop certification of his election defeat.
From Barron's ● Aug. 19, 2026
And just as I expect, he reacts by throwing the bat down and storming off.
From "Fast Pitch" by Nic Stone
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