flash flood

American  

noun

flash floods plural

1. a sudden and destructive rush of water down a narrow gully or over a sloping surface, caused by heavy rainfall.

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flash flood British  

noun

1. a sudden short-lived torrent, usually caused by a heavy storm, esp in desert regions

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flash flood Scientific  

/ flăsh /

1. A sudden, localized flood of great volume and short duration, typically caused by unusually heavy rain in a semiarid area. Flash floods can reach their peak volume in a matter of a few minutes and often carry large loads of mud and rock fragments.

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Synonym Usage

See flood.

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• flash floods
  plural

Etymology

Origin of flash flood

First recorded in 1935–40

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

flash flood

Authorities warn that the same storm system is now threatening other islands, with flash flood alerts and evacuation warnings issued for parts of Maui, Molokai and Lanai.

From Salon ● Mar. 22, 2026

Honolulu Department of Emergency Management has issued multiple flash flood warnings and urged residents to move to higher ground and avoid flooded areas.

From BBC ● Mar. 21, 2026

The platform highlights locations where there could be flash flood risks on a map.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 12, 2026

A fast moving storm drenched Los Angeles overnight and triggered a flash flood warning in a local burn scar Wednesday, according to the National Weather Service.

From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 11, 2026

A flash flood washed the makeshift road away, so he moved twenty miles out, toward the Borrego badlands, where he camps beside an isolated stand of cottonwoods.

From "Into the Wild" by Jon Krakauer

Related Words

• deluge
• torrent