funnel cloud

American

noun

a rapidly rotating funnel-shaped cloud extending downward from the base of a cumulonimbus cloud, which, if it touches the surface of the earth, is a tornado or waterspout.

funnel cloud British

noun

a whirling column of cloud extending downwards from the base of a cumulonimbus cloud: part of a waterspout or tornado

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

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.

If it doesn't, it's only a funnel cloud.

From BBC • Nov. 7, 2023

Capitol building on Tuesday afternoon were treated to an unusual sight: the unmistakable shape of a funnel cloud extending diagonally from the sky and seemingly almost reaching the tip of the Capitol dome itself.

From Washington Times • Jul. 25, 2023

Although strong thunderstorms are fairly routine in the nation’s capital, Mansfield said a particular type of “spin in the atmosphere” is what tips things over into funnel cloud conditions.

From Seattle Times • Jul. 25, 2023

In early 2021, a Wikipedia editor peered into the future and saw what looked like a funnel cloud on the horizon: the rise of GPT-3, a precursor to the new chatbots from OpenAI.

From New York Times • Jul. 18, 2023

It swirled up, hundreds of gallons of water in a massive icy funnel cloud.

From "The Titan's Curse" by Rick Riordan

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023