torrential

adjective

tor·​ren·​tial tȯ-ˈren(t)-shəl 

tə-

1

a

: relating to or having the character of a torrent

torrential rains

b

: caused by or resulting from action of rapid streams

torrential gravel

2

: resembling a torrent in violence or rapidity of flow

torrentially

tȯ-ˈren(t)-sh(ə-)lē, 

tə- 

adverb

Examples of torrential in a Sentence

The rain caused torrential flooding.

Recent Examples on the Web

Late last year, the White House’s social-media team lauded ICE’s torrential deportation efforts with a string of memes seemingly engineered to go viral. —Brady Brickner-Wood, New Yorker, 7 Jan. 2026

That section of the river rose rapidly on New Year’s Day when a huge Pacific storm produced torrential downpours across San Diego County, causing widespread flooding. —Gary Robbins, San Diego Union-Tribune, 4 Jan. 2026

In the early morning hours of July 3, torrential rains turned the Guadalupe River in Kerr County into a raging wall of water, causing the river to rise 26 feet in less than an hour. —Julia Jacobo, ABC News, 31 Dec. 2025

At least one person has died in Redding, California, because of the torrential rain and significant flooding as the state braces for worsening conditions this week. —Erin McGarry, NBC news, 22 Dec. 2025

Word History

Etymology

torrent entry 1 + -ial

First Known Use

1849, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Rhymes for torrential

• credential
• prudential
• sequential
• tangential
• circumferential
• inconsequential
• consequential
• deferential
• evidential
• existential
• exponential
• influential

Kids Definition

torrential

adjective

tor·​ren·​tial tȯ-ˈren-chəl 

tə-

: relating to or resembling a torrent

torrential rains

torrentially

-ˈrench-(ə-)lē 

adverb