cloudburst

noun

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cloud·burst | \ ˈklau̇d-ˌbərst

Definition of cloudburst

1 : a sudden copious rainfall

2 : a sudden outpouring : deluge a cloudburst of anger

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Examples of cloudburst in a Sentence

A cloudburst caused the river to flood. the weatherman warned of possible cloudbursts in the afternoon

Recent Examples on the Web For Miami, the injury seemed to have the effect of a cloudburst. — Scott Cacciola, New York Times, 1 Oct. 2020 Bison edge along a slough nearby as Horse Capture speaks; cloudbursts circle. — National Geographic, 16 Jan. 2020 Around them a cloudburst of rubber balls streamed through the air, like unfed birds sweeping in toward death. — Mimi Montgomery, Outside Online, 22 Oct. 2019 Ruined once more, Ellicott City endured an hours-long cloudburst that drowned the town Sunday. — Jeff Halverson, Washington Post, 28 May 2018 In summer, runoff from cloudbursts etches into the softer limestones and sluices through the deep runnels. — National Geographic, 19 Aug. 2019 In neighbouring Uttarakhand, cloudbursts have wreaked havoc in a dozen villages of Uttarkashi district, washing away houses and swathes of agricultural land. — Niharika Sharma, Quartz India, 19 Aug. 2019 These tidal floods can have big impacts apart from the extreme effects of the hurricanes, tropical storms, and cloudbursts that are starting to arrive this summer. — Susan Crawford, WIRED, 18 July 2019 Earlier in the afternoon, thunderstorms packing winds of around 60 mph moved through the far southwest suburbs, as many parts of the Chicago area were hit by cloudbursts. — Liam Ford, chicagotribune.com, 5 July 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'cloudburst.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.