spate

[ speyt ]
/ speɪt /
SEE SYNONYMS FOR spate ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a sudden, almost overwhelming, outpouring: a spate of angry words.
British.
  1. a flood or inundation.
  2. a river flooding its banks.
  3. a sudden or heavy rainstorm.

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a granular metamorphic rock.
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Origin of spate

1400–50; late Middle English (north) < ?

Words nearby spate

spastic ileus, spastic paralysis, spasticity, spat, spatchcock, spate, spathaceous, spathe, spathic, spathiphyllum, spathose
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

Words related to spate

string, deluge, wave, outpouring, flood, flurry, succession, torrent, rush, run

Example sentences from the Web for spate

British Dictionary definitions for spate

spate
/ (speɪt) /

noun

a fast flow, rush, or outpouringa spate of words
mainly British a sudden floodthe rivers were in spate
mainly British a sudden heavy downpour

Word Origin for spate

C15 (Northern and Scottish): of unknown origin
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