tornado
noun
- violently rotating column of air that is in contact with both the earth's surface and a cumulonimbus cloud in the air
verb
- for a tornado storm to occur
Wiktionary
Pronunciation: /tɔː(ɹ)ˈneɪ.dəʊ/ / /tɔɹˈneɪ.doʊ/
noun
Etymology: From earlier English ternado, attested since the 1550s as a nautical term for a windy thunderstorm. From Spanish tronada (“thunderstorm”), from tronar (“to thunder”), from Latin tonō (“to thunder”), from Proto-Indo-European *(s)tenh₂- (“to thunder”). The o and r were reversed in English (metathesis) under influence of Spanish tornar (“to twist, to turn”), from Latin tornō (“to turn”).
- A violent wind in the form of a mobile, rapidly rotating, funnel cloud that has contacted the ground.
“An extreme version of vorticity is a vortex. The vortex is a spinning, cyclonic mass of fluid, which can be observed in the rotation of water going down a drain, as well as in smoke rings, tornados and hurricanes.”
“Some of the same areas hit by tornadoes just a little over a week ago are expecting severe storms again Monday afternoon and evening. […] A multiday severe weather outbreak is possible Monday through Wednesday, increasing the already-above average tornado count even higher.”
verb
Etymology: From earlier English ternado, attested since the 1550s as a nautical term for a windy thunderstorm. From Spanish tronada (“thunderstorm”), from tronar (“to thunder”), from Latin tonō (“to thunder”), from Proto-Indo-European *(s)tenh₂- (“to thunder”). The o and r were reversed in English (metathesis) under influence of Spanish tornar (“to twist, to turn”), from Latin tornō (“to turn”).
- To sweep through something violently.
“And so on Friday nights, James Torin tornadoed through six beers, a carton of cigarettes, a coffee table littered with lottery tickets, and unrequited dreams.”
“They come every night, those cavernous trains, tornadoing the frozen house, a madness feeling for the door.”