hurricane

[hur-i-keyn, huhr- or, esp. British, -kuh n] /ˈhɜr ɪˌkeɪn, ˈhʌr- or, esp. British, -kən/
noun
1.
a violent, tropical, cyclonic storm of the western North Atlantic, having wind speeds of or in excess of 72 miles per hour (32 m/sec).
Compare tropical cyclone, typhoon.
2.
a storm of the most intense severity.
3.
anything suggesting a violent storm.
4.
(initial capital letter) Military. a single-seat British fighter plane of World War II, fitted with eight .303 caliber machine guns and with a top speed in excess of 300 miles per hour (480 km/h).
Origin
1545-55; < Spanish huracán < Taino hurakán
Can be confused
cyclone, hurricane, tidal wave, tornado, tsunami, typhoon.
Examples from the web for hurricane
  • The hurricane season officially starts today.
  • After a slow start, the 2009 hurricane season is kicking off in a big way.
  • Everyone knew that hurricane Iris was coming.
  • The tropic sun danced off the heaving waters which were just subsiding from the hurricane of three days before.
  • The Ferris wheel is the safest amusement ride in existence; only a hurricane-force wind poses a threat to the customers.
  • We are afraid to return home until hurricane season is over.
  • People run for cover in midst of hurricane Gloria.
  • Florida weathers its second-costliest hurricane.
  • The town was destroyed by a hurricane.
  • Greatly increased hurricane activity was predicted.
British Dictionary definitions for hurricane

hurricane

/ˈhʌrɪkən; -keɪn/
noun
1.
a severe, often destructive storm, esp a tropical cyclone
2.
  1. a wind of force 12 or above on the Beaufort scale
  2. (as modifier): a wind of hurricane force
3.
anything acting like such a wind
Word Origin
C16: from Spanish huracán, from Taino hurakán, from hura wind
Word Origin and History for hurricane
n.

1550s, a partially deformed adoptation from Spanish huracan (Gonzalo Fernandez de Oviedo y Valdés, "Historia General y Natural de las Indias," 1547-9), furacan (in the works of Pedro Mártir De Anghiera, chaplain to the court of King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella and historian of Spanish explorations), from an Arawakan (W. Indies) word. In Portuguese, it became furacão. For confusion of initial -f- and -h- in Spanish, see hacienda. The word is first in English in Richard Eden's "Decades of the New World":

These tempestes of the ayer (which the Grecians caule Tiphones ...) they caule furacanes.
OED records 39 different spellings, mostly from the late 16c., including forcane, herrycano, harrycain, hurlecane. Modern form became frequent from 1650, established after 1688. Shakespeare uses hurricano ("King Lear," "Troilus and Cressida"), but in reference to waterspouts.

hurricane in Science
hurricane
  (hûr'ĭ-kān')   

A severe, rotating tropical storm with heavy rains and cyclonic winds exceeding 74 mi (119 km) per hour, especially such a storm occurring in the Northern Hemisphere. Hurricanes originate in the tropical parts of the Atlantic Ocean or the Caribbean Sea and move generally northward. They lose force when they move over land or colder ocean waters. See Note at cyclone.
hurricane in Culture

hurricane definition


A large tropical storm system with high-powered circular winds. (See cyclone and eye of a hurricane.)

Note: Between July and October, hurricanes cause extensive damage along the Atlantic and Gulf coasts of the United States. (See Atlantic Ocean and Gulf of Mexico.)