cyclone

cyclone — noun

1. a powerful storm that forms over warm ocean waters in tropical regions, with win

1.nounB1
Definition

a powerful storm that forms over warm ocean waters in tropical regions, with winds that spin rapidly around a calm center

Example

Cyclone Freddy struck the coast of Mozambique in 2023, destroying thousands of homes.

pattern: Cyclone + proper name for naming storms

The coastal village was evacuated before the cyclone arrived, so no one was hurt.

Common collocations
  • tropical cyclone
  • cyclone season
  • cyclone warning
  • cyclone watch
  • cyclone hits the coast
Synonyms
  • hurricane

    the same type of storm but only in the Atlantic and eastern Pacific oceans

  • typhoon

    the same type of storm but only in the northwest Pacific Ocean

  • storm

    more general; not all storms have the circular wind structure of a cyclone

Grammar Patterns

the + cyclone + proper name

Cyclone + [name]

Usage Note

In weather reports, a cyclone is often given a human name (e.g. Cyclone Amphan). This naming system is similar to that used for hurricanes.

Common Mistakes

The cyclone is going to rain heavily.
The cyclone is going to bring heavy rain.
a cyclone itself does not rain; it brings or causes rain.

2. a broad weather formation in which air moves in a spiral pattern toward a centra

2.nounB2
Definition

a broad weather formation in which air moves in a spiral pattern toward a central area with reduced pressure, usually generating clouds and rain

Example

A deep cyclone over the Bay of Bengal brought heavy rainfall to eastern India.

collocation: deep cyclone

The satellite images showed a large cyclone spinning slowly across the southern Pacific Ocean.

Common collocations
  • deep cyclone
  • cyclone system
  • cyclone center
  • surface cyclone
  • upper-level cyclone
Synonyms
  • low-pressure system

    more general term for any area of low atmospheric pressure

  • depression

    a weaker low-pressure system, often a stage before a storm develops

Antonyms
  • anticyclone

    a weather system with high atmospheric pressure at its center

Grammar Patterns

a + cyclone + [preposition] + [area]

Usage Note

This is the technical meteorological sense. In this sense, 'cyclone' can refer to both tropical and extratropical systems. The opposite weather system is an 'anticyclone,' which involves high pressure and sinking air.

Common Mistakes

A cyclone has high pressure in the middle.
A cyclone has low pressure in the center, with air flowing inward.
a cyclone is defined by low atmospheric pressure at its center, not high pressure.

3. a rapidly spinning column of air that moves across land in a destructive path, o

3.nounB2
Definition

a rapidly spinning column of air that moves across land in a destructive path, often used to refer to a tornado

Example

The cyclone ripped through the small town, overturning cars and tearing off roofs.

collocation: cyclone + rip through [place]

Farmers in the Midwest often build underground shelters to protect themselves from cyclones.

Common collocations
  • cyclone shelter
  • cyclone damage
  • cyclone warning siren
  • cyclone hit the town
Synonyms
  • tornado

    the standard term for a violent rotating column of air that touches the ground

  • twister

    informal synonym for tornado, common in American English

Usage Note

This sense is more common in American English, especially in the central United States. In other varieties of English, 'tornado' is the preferred term for this phenomenon.

Common Mistakes

We need to leave before the cyclone floods the town.' (when meaning a tornado)
We need to get to the basement before the cyclone hits.
a cyclone in this sense is a dry, rotating windstorm over land; flooding is more associated with the tropical storm sense.

Word family

  • cyclonic
    adjectiveC1
  • anticyclone
    nounC1
  • cyclogenesis
    nounC2

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

All four words describe powerful, rotating windstorms, but they differ in location and structure. A ‘cyclone’ commonly refers to a tropical storm in the Indian Ocean and South Pacific. ‘Hurricane’ is the term for the same type of storm when it forms over the Atlantic or eastern Pacific. ‘Typhoon’ is used for storms in the northwest Pacific, near East and Southeast Asia. These three are essentially the same meteorological phenomenon — a tropical cyclone with sustained winds of at least 74 mph (119 km/h) — just with different regional names. A ‘tornado’, by contrast, is a much smaller but often more violent rotating column of air that forms over land, typically from a thunderstorm. Unlike a cyclone, a tornado touches the ground directly and has a very narrow path of destruction that lasts only minutes. For example: ‘The city of Miami prepared for Hurricane Ian’ but ‘The tornado destroyed just two blocks in the center of town.’

cyclone ↗hurricane ↗typhoon ↗tornado ↗

Common collocations

Nouns

  • cyclone warning
  • cyclone watch
  • cyclone season
  • cyclone path
  • eye of the cyclone

Phrases

  • the path of the cyclone
  • the center of the cyclone
  • winds of the cyclone

Prepositions

  • in a cyclone
  • during a cyclone
  • after a cyclone
  • from a cyclone

Etymology

GreekEnglish

The word 'cyclone' was coined in the mid-19th century by British official Henry Piddington, who borrowed it from the Greek word 'kyklōma' (meaning 'wheel' or 'circle'), referring to the circular motion of the winds in these storms. It entered English as a scientific term for rotating storms and later spread into general use.