maelstrom
Americannoun
-
a large, powerful, or violent whirlpool.
-
a restless, disordered, or tumultuous state of affairs.
the maelstrom of early morning traffic.
- Synonyms:
- bedlam, pandemonium, tumult
-
(initial capital letter) a famous hazardous whirlpool off the NW coast of Norway.
noun
-
a large powerful whirlpool
-
any turbulent confusion
noun
Etymology
Origin of maelstrom
1550–60 maelstrom for def. 3; < early Dutch maelstroom, now spelling maalstroom, representing mal ( en ) to grind + stroom stream. See meal 2, stream
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.
What I have noticed, however, is the lack of their equivalents in our present media maelstrom.
From Salon
The 31-year-old wife of Brooklyn Beckham has found herself in the centre of a media maelstrom following her husband's explosive social media post taking aim at his A-list parents, Sir David and Lady Victoria.
From BBC
The country of 52 million, with the world’s No. 14 economy, has emerged from the maelstrom of 2025 in a geoeconomic sweet spot.
From Barron's
By morning, the clouds parted, and we found we survived the meteorological maelstrom relatively intact.
From Los Angeles Times
In the maelstrom, Root stood tall to notch one of the few milestones missing from a glittering career.
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.
