cloud

1 of 2

noun

1
: a visible mass of particles of condensed vapor (such as water or ice) suspended in the atmosphere of a planet (such as the earth) or moon
2
: something resembling or suggesting a cloud: such as
a
: a light filmy, puffy, or billowy mass seeming to float in the air
a cloud of blond hair
a ship under a cloud of sail
b(1)
: a usually visible mass of minute particles suspended in the air or a gas
(2)
: an aggregation of usually obscuring matter especially in interstellar space
(3)
: an aggregate of charged particles (such as electrons)
c
: a great crowd or multitude : swarm
clouds of mosquitoes
3
: something that has a dark, lowering, or threatening aspect
clouds of war
a cloud of suspicion
4
: something that obscures or blemishes
a cloud of ambiguity
5
: a dark or opaque vein or spot (as in marble or a precious stone)
6
: the computers and connections that support cloud computing
storing files in the cloud
often used before another noun
cloud storage/backup
cloud software
cloudlike adjective
or cloud-like
cloudlike swirls
cloudlike chocolate mousse

Illustration of cloud

Illustration of cloud
  • 1 cirrus
  • 2 cirrostratus
  • 3 cirrocumulus
  • 4 altostratus
  • 5 altocumulus
  • 6 stratocumulus
  • 7 nimbostratus
  • 8 cumulus
  • 9 cumulonimbus
  • 10 stratus

cloud

2 of 2

verb

clouded; clouding; clouds

intransitive verb

1
: to grow cloudy
usually used with over or up
clouded over before the storm
2
a
of facial features : to become troubled, apprehensive, or distressed in appearance
her face clouded with worry
b
: to become blurry, dubious, or ominous
often used with over
the outlook is clouding over
3
: to billow up in the form of a cloud

transitive verb

1
a
: to envelop or hide with or as if with a cloud
b
: to make opaque especially by condensation of moisture
steam clouded the windows
c
: to make murky especially with smoke or mist
smoke clouded the sky
2
: to make unclear or confused
cloud the issue
3
: taint, sully
a clouded reputation
4
: to cast gloom over
cloud prospects for success

Examples of cloud in a Sentence

Noun The sun is shining and there's not a cloud in the sky. flying high above the clouds It stopped raining and the sun poked through the clouds. a cloud of cigarette smoke The team has been under a cloud since its members were caught cheating. There's a cloud of controversy hanging over the election. Verb greed clouding the minds of men These new ideas only cloud the issue further. The final years of her life were clouded by illness.
Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
However, unlike Amazon, both Microsoft and Google will only waive fees for those who outright cancel their cloud accounts. David Meyer, Fortune, 14 Mar. 2024 Some of the popular cloud services include Dropbox, Microsoft OneDrive, Apple iCloud and Google One. Larry Magid, The Mercury News, 14 Mar. 2024 Nvidia, the world’s leading maker of chips powering artificial intelligence, is teaming up with the country’s utilities conglomerate to develop a $4.3 billion artificial intelligence cloud and supercomputer center. Patricia Cohen, New York Times, 13 Mar. 2024 Like today, the temperature differential between ground level and clouds can be amplified by vorticity, creating some frozen precipitation (graupel snow grains) even with temperatures around or slightly above 50 degrees! A. Camden Walker, Washington Post, 10 Mar. 2024 The more dust or clouds in Earth's atmosphere, the redder the moon will appear. The Indianapolis Star, 8 Mar. 2024 Beyond that, Titan is unique as the only other place in our solar system with its own weather cycle; liquid methane evaporates, forms clouds and rains back down into rivers. Max Bennett, Discover Magazine, 7 Mar. 2024 As twilight adorns the sky with its ethereal canvas, the horizon’s resplendent clouds mirror the trilogy of Xiao Xia albums reflecting upon Huang Qishan’s midlife journey. Billboard China, Billboard, 6 Mar. 2024 For example, with the hours saved automating patches and updates, an IT professional could instead earn new certifications for AWS cloud management. Douglas Murray, Forbes, 1 Mar. 2024
Verb
And the entire contracting system appears to purposely cloud who is responsible for the worker’s rights, adds Benedict. Chloe Berger, Fortune, 9 Mar. 2024 Though her late husband is widely hailed as an anticorruption icon who risked his life to oppose Putin, Navalny’s legacy in Ukraine is clouded by past statements that Crimea, which Putin annexed in 2014, belonged to Russia. Tyler Pager, Washington Post, 6 Mar. 2024 The report, which covers a period from the outbreak of the fighting up to Dec. 15, documents abuses in a country that has been largely inaccessible to aid groups and rights monitors recently, clouding the impact of a conflict that been overshadowed by wars in places like Gaza and Ukraine. Jamey Keaten, The Denver Post, 23 Feb. 2024 This will come in the form of a broad range of incentives and bundles of Palo Alto's products, which range from firewalls to cloud security and SASE. R. Scott Raynovich, Forbes, 22 Feb. 2024 The track is much more likely to be clouded out on the south side over Arkansas’ Mississippi Alluvial Plain and the Missouri Bootheel; eclipse seekers in this region should plan on moving onto the Ozark Plateau near West Plains, Missouri. Jay Anderson, Discover Magazine, 21 Feb. 2024 Sony has followed Microsoft into the game subscription era, launched multiple PlayStation exclusives on PC, and opened up PS5 games to cloud streaming. Tom Warren, The Verge, 18 Jan. 2024 The political dynamics of an election year have clouded the package’s prospects. Kayla Guo, New York Times, 16 Jan. 2024 The future of chimpanzees is unfortunately clouded by the possibility of extinction in the not-so-distant future. Jake Parks, Discover Magazine, 30 Jan. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'cloud.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English, rock, cloud, from Old English clūd; perhaps akin to Greek gloutos buttock

First Known Use

Noun

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

1562, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of cloud was in the 14th century

Dictionary Entries Near cloud

Cite this Entry

“Cloud.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/cloud. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

cloud

1 of 2 noun
1
: a visible mass of particles of water or ice in the form of fog, mist, or haze usually high in the air
2
a
: a usually visible mass of tiny particles in the air or bits of matter between stars
b
: a group of charged particles (as electrons)
3
: something resembling or thought to be like a cloud
a cloud of mosquitoes
under a cloud of suspicion
4
: something that appears dark or threatening
clouds of war
5
: the computers and connections that support cloud computing
storing files in the cloud
cloudless
-ləs
adjective

cloud

2 of 2 verb
1
: to make or become cloudy
2
: to darken or hide with or as if by a cloud
smog clouded our view

More from Merriam-Webster on cloud

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