gale

noun

ˈgāl 

1

a

: a strong current of air:

(1)

: a wind from 32 to 63 miles per hour (about 51 to 102 kilometers per hour)

(2)

: fresh gale see Beaufort Scale Table

b

archaic : breeze

2

: an emotional outburst

gales of laughter

Synonyms

• explosion
• burst
• gust
• outburst
• eruption
• flash
• blaze
• storm

Examples of gale in a Sentence

The boat was damaged in a strong gale.

The winds approached gale force.

The audience erupted in gales of laughter.

Recent Examples on the Web

Myriad other alerts, including a gale warning, small craft advisory, and high surf advisory, are in place along the western coast. —Anna Skinner, MSNBC Newsweek, 1 Sep. 2025

Forecasters sent gale warnings via telegraph to more than 100 stations. —Frank Witsil, Freep.com, 25 Aug. 2025

Southern China also shuts down Southern China’s Hainan Island saw heavy rainfall and gales as the typhoon brushed past the island on Sunday. —Miranda Jeyaretnam, Time, 25 Aug. 2025

Forecasters said tropical storm-force winds are possible in extreme southeastern Massachusetts during the next couple of hours, with gusts to gale force possible along portions of Nova Scotia and the Avalon Peninsula of Newfoundland on Saturday, Aug. 23. —Gabe Hauari, USA Today, 22 Aug. 2025

Word History

Etymology

of obscure origin

First Known Use

circa 1547, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Phrases Containing gale

• fresh gale
• moderate gale
• near gale
• strong gale
• whole gale

Rhymes for gale

• ail
• ale
• bail
• baile
• dail
• fail
• flail
• frail
• gael
• gail
• grail
• hail

Kids Definition

gale

noun

ˈgā(ə)l 

1

: a strong current of air

especially : a wind of from 32 to 63 miles (about 51 to 101 kilometers) per hour

2

: an emotional outburst

gales of laughter

Biographical Definition

Gale

biographical name

ˈgāl 

Zona 1874–1938 American novelist