deluge
noun
a great flood of water; inundation; flood.
Trivia Time
In Greek mythology, whose anger was said to cause a great deluge sent to punish humanity?
deluge
American
[del-yooj, -yoozh, del-ooj, -oozh, dih-looj, -loozh]
/ ˈdɛl judʒ, -juʒ, ˈdɛl udʒ, -uʒ, dɪˈludʒ, -ˈluʒ /
noun
-
deluges
plural
-
a great flood of water; inundation; flood.
-
a drenching rain; downpour.
-
anything that overwhelms like a flood.
a deluge of mail.
- Synonyms:
- catastrophe, cataclysm
-
the Deluge. flood.
deluge
1
British
/ ˈdɛljuːdʒ /
noun
-
a great flood of water
-
torrential rain; downpour
-
an overwhelming rush or number
a deluge of requests
verb
-
to flood, as with water; soak, swamp, or drown
-
to overwhelm or overrun; inundate
Deluge
2
British
/ ˈdɛljuːdʒ /
noun
Synonym Usage
See flood.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
delugesimple
-
delugessimple
-
have delugedperfect
-
has delugedperfect
-
am delugingprogressive
-
are delugingprogressive
-
is delugingprogressive
-
have been delugingperfect progressive
-
has been delugingperfect progressive
Past
-
delugedsimple
-
had delugedperfect
-
was delugingprogressive
-
were delugingprogressive
-
had been delugingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of deluge
First recorded in 1325–75; Middle English, from Old French, from Latin dīluvium “flood,” equivalent to dīluv-, base of dīluere “to wash away, dissolve” ( dī- di 2 + -luere, combining form of lavere “to wash”) + -ium -ium
Explanation
Feeling overwhelmed, like you're underwater? You might be experiencing a deluge — like when you've been given a deluge of homework over vacation: a dozen term papers, two dozen books to read, and a mile-high stack of math problems. The noun deluge is an overwhelming amount of something in general, such as work, people, or questions. Because of its Latin roots, however, in particular it means an overwhelming amount of water. It comes from diluvian, which means flood. The verb deluge similarly means to overwhelm or inundate with something, particularly water. The hurricane deluged the island with rain. A deluge isn't always a bad thing, however. One thing most people would like to be deluged with? Money.
Vocabulary lists containing deluge
100 SAT Words Beginning with "D"
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Water Hazard: Words for Too Much Moisture
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"The Devil and Tom Walker" by Washington Irving
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Megacap companies, including the “Magnificent Seven” group of tech stocks, have been almost rate insensitive in recent months, despite borrowing a deluge of new debt to fund the AI build-out.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 7, 2026
On a 5,500-acre farm near Fresno, grower Don Cameron is prepared for a deluge.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 26, 2026
States of emergency have been declared in New York and New Jersey, the latter of which is already facing a coastal deluge in some areas.
From BBC ● Sep. 26, 2026
The deluge took the same path where power plants are concentrated.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 9, 2026
“The Thief’s Downfall!” said Griphook, clambering to his feet and looking back at the deluge onto the tracks, which, Harry knew now, had been more than water.
From "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" by J.K. Rowling
The Deluge, by contrast, spans continents and careens through decades' worth of nightmarish scenes that feel like they were made for Hollywood.
From Salon ● Jan. 31, 2023
Deluge be damned, Stutzmann turned in one of the most honestly moving Tchaikovsky Sixths that I have heard.
From New York Times ● Aug. 5, 2022
This story is part of a series, After the Deluge, produced with support from the Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting.
From Seattle Times ● Jul. 29, 2021
The response to the Crash, according to Adam Tooze in his book The Deluge, was deflationary policies were pursued everywhere.
From The Guardian ● Mar. 4, 2017
But this is fourteen years after the Deluge.
From Theological Essays by Charles Bradlaugh
"My flat's car park was under water -- it never floods, even in 2011" when hundreds of people died across Thailand in heavy deluges, he said, asking AFP not to publish his family name.
From Barron's ● Sep. 28, 2026
The broadcaster additionally cited Americans’ continuous deluges of supportive comments when it asked the regulatory agency, in June, to drop its license order.
From Slate ● Aug. 18, 2026
Newsom and other supporters have said the tunnel would protect the state’s water system as climate change intensifies severe droughts and deluges.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 7, 2026
In Aceh Tamiang, one of the hardest-hit areas of Indonesia, survivors described villages being entirely swept away by fast-moving deluges.
From BBC ● Dec. 6, 2025
Until—I gotta admit it—I get deluges of grandeur, or something.
From Hoiman and the Solar Circuit by Gordon Dewey
But the opposite was true: I was deluged with requests for help from people hoping to save their relationships with their friends and loved ones.
From Salon ● Jun. 8, 2026
Legitimately good doctors are deluged with referrals and turn away new patients.
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 3, 2026
Utah officials have complained that the state has been deluged with constitutional challenges.
From Slate ● May 4, 2026
When it became clear that the company was replacing its original formula rather than offering New Coke alongside it, its Atlanta headquarters was deluged with angry phone calls.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 23, 2026
Mayor Swaney was deluged with angry phone calls and emails from Times readers who were appalled that he had kicked the Fugees out of the town park after Christmas.
From "Outcasts United: An American Town, a Refugee Team, and One Woman's Quest to Make a Difference" by Warren St. John
Both sides are deluging the White House with their arguments.
From New York Times ● Mar. 16, 2023
Massive storms are increasingly deluging California followed by periods of drought that increase the risk of wildfires.
From Reuters ● Jan. 5, 2023
Instead, hundreds of thousands enlisted to fight the Russians, deluging recruiters from the army and the territorial defense force to the degree that many initially had to be turned away.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 20, 2022
Angry residents are deluging officials with complaints and filing lawsuits, while some leading companies are installing new equipment, making payments to neighbors or even closing down.
From Seattle Times ● Nov. 21, 2021
On the way into North Hampden, it was all I could do to keep from deluging Henry with questions, but I kept my mouth shut until we got there.
From "The Secret History" by Donna Tartt
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.
