deluge
Americannoun
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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.
noun
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a great flood of water
-
torrential rain; downpour
-
an overwhelming rush or number
a deluge of requests
verb
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to flood, as with water; soak, swamp, or drown
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to overwhelm or overrun; inundate
noun
Related Words
See flood.
Other Word Forms
- undeluged adjective
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
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.
Our attention is diverted away from ourselves and toward a collective hive mind by social media, advertising and the crushing deluge of current events.
From Salon
The latest deluge of rain has made getting around Los Angeles doubly difficult for motorists, pedestrians and cyclists.
From Los Angeles Times
The ultimate authority on how to handle the deluge of media inquiries was Mayor Karen Bass, according to an internal email reviewed by The Times.
From Los Angeles Times
The deluge the country has been experiencing in the last week has been put down to a blocked weather pattern - a high pressure system over Scandinavia is preventing the wet weather from moving away.
From BBC
Parts of the UK have been hit with a real deluge of rain so far this year with Cornwall and County Down recording their wettest January on record.
From BBC
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.
