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.
Everyday activism created a perfect storm at the Supreme Court in 2015.
From Slate ● Aug. 1, 2026
Investors had come to view Apple’s stock as a port in the storm of artificial-intelligence uncertainty, but the company’s latest earnings report showed it’s not immune to AI pressures.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 31, 2026
US giants Microsoft and Amazon unveiled healthy earnings this week that saw their shares storm higher on Wall Street, helping the Nasdaq pile on almost three percent.
From Barron's ● Jul. 31, 2026
The report said there is not one factor causing the crisis, with a "perfect storm" of the jobs market, spending on education and the Covid pandemic being some of the reasons highlighted.
From BBC ● Jul. 28, 2026
Anger builds inside me, not unlike the storm clouds brewing above.
From "Red Flags and Butterflies" by Sheryl Azzam
U.S. natural gas futures settled higher with the market looking to Thursday’s weekly storage report and keeping an eye on Tropical Storm Bertha as the system moves along the Louisiana coast toward Texas.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 24, 2026
This is only the second named storm of the season, after Tropical Storm Arthur brought some flooding to the US last month.
From BBC ● Jul. 21, 2026
Tropical Storm Bertha spread across northwestern Florida Tuesday, where it was predicted to bring coastal flooding and heavy rainfall, the National Hurricane Center said.
From Barron's ● Jul. 21, 2026
The Sparks have no answer for Storm rookie Flau’jae Johnson, who scores 23 points in Seattle’s victory.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 8, 2026
There will be more about running dogs later, and more about Storm, but for the moment it is enough to know that when I started I thought I knew what I was doing.
From "Woodsong" by Gary Paulsen
From all the natural disasters in Europe during the first half of the year, the nine winter storms alone accounted for about 80% of total losses and 70% of insured losses, the data shows.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 30, 2026
El Niño is a global climate pattern that can bring heavy storms and severe drought.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 28, 2026
At the same time, Greenland would experience fewer storms, leading to less snowfall and slower ice accumulation.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 28, 2026
But because these storms are located directly above a fire, we would need to know the fire's exact location in advance.
From Barron's ● Jul. 27, 2026
It would take several more storms for the ground to soften.
From "A Girl Named Disaster" by Nancy Farmer
Toppled in August 2024 by a student-led uprising that ended her 15-year, iron-fisted rule, Hasina fled by helicopter to India as crowds stormed her palace.
From Barron's ● Jul. 29, 2026
The Los Angeles Dodgers stormed to the World Series last season with a bullpen that could generously be described as shaky.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 28, 2026
Several groups of teens have stormed into Scientology buildings in Hollywood in recent weeks as part of a viral trend.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 23, 2026
Years before “Barbie” stormed movie houses, Elle was the subversive answer to whether a woman’s love of makeup, pastel colors, skirts and heels negated her feminism.
From Salon ● Jul. 6, 2026
He stormed away, the echo of his roar locked in the dungeon with Amah and the stonecutter.
From "When the Sea Turned to Silver" by Grace Lin
Back then, at a vote held in Kigali, Rwanda, the support for him was so overwhelming that he was ushered back into office by acclaim, with a storming round of applause replacing a formal vote.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 31, 2026
A late time violation penalty left Laura Siegemund storming off the court upset, triggering a dispute between her partner Edouard Roger-Vasselin and Ostapenko over claims of persistent slow play.
From BBC ● Jul. 6, 2026
Thousands of Kenyans took to the streets in June 2024 against economic hardship and corruption, eventually storming parliament to force the cancellation of new taxes.
From Barron's ● Jun. 25, 2026
Paul McCartney releases an album inspired by his youth in Liverpool, Marilyn Monroe gets a centenary-celebrating exhibition in Los Angeles, Brendan Fraser’s Dwight D. Eisenhower contemplates storming the beaches of Normandy, and more.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 25, 2026
I feel like I am an initiate again, storming the stairs of the Hub right after the Choosing Ceremony.
From "Insurgent" by Veronica Roth
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
