torrent
Americannoun
adjective
noun
-
a fast, voluminous, or violent stream of water or other liquid
-
an overwhelming flow of thoughts, words, sound, etc
-
computing a file that controls the transfer of data in a BitTorrent system See BitTorrent
adjective
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of torrent
1595–1605; < Latin torrent- (stem of torrēns ) seething, literally, burning, present participle of torrēre to burn, parch; see torrid, -ent
Explanation
A torrent is a heavy rain, or the flooding or wildly-running streams it causes, like the torrent that soaks everyone unlucky enough to be out on the street at that moment. Because the noun torrent literally means "rushing stream," it often describes fast-flowing water, like a rainstorm or creeks and rivers that overflow their banks. But the word can also describe any sudden inundation, like a deluge of words or thoughts, like when, in anger, you unleash a torrent of emotional words on your friend. Like a violent storm, you pour those words, not letting up in order to let him or her explain the other side of the story.
Vocabulary lists containing torrent
A Long Walk to Water
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List 5
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"Julius Caesar" by William Shakespeare, Act I
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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.
See Examples For:
If users plan to torrent, game or make video calls, speed and reliability are crucial.
From Salon ● Jun. 10, 2026
Pratt has brought national attention to his campaign by amplifying a torrent of viral, AI-generated content.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 21, 2026
It was a prescient review given the torrent of public criticism from his own colleagues that was about to be begin.
From BBC ● May 12, 2026
The surprising revelation was part of a torrent of flattery, pomp and circumstance unleashed by Trump as Charles and Queen Camilla visited the White House.
From Barron's ● Apr. 28, 2026
By the summer of 1940, the flow of government money into the Rad Lab had grown into a torrent.
From "Big Science" by Michael Hiltzik
In the corridors, torrents of water poured from broken pipes.
From Barron's ● Apr. 25, 2026
But on the Italians’ opening night, the torrents of rain short-circuited TV monitors and panelists struggled to give their presentations.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 21, 2025
Europe's victory in New York last month came amid torrents of verbal abuse from the home crowd.
From BBC ● Oct. 8, 2025
On the one hand, this is a place that is known to be dangerous—part of Texas’ Flash Flood Alley, where big storms, dry ground, and hilly terrain routinely combine to turn riverbeds into deadly torrents.
From Slate ● Jul. 8, 2025
The rain, which was falling in torrents, added to the uproar.
From "A Long Walk to Water" by Linda Sue Park
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.
