Main Entry: tor·na·do
Pronunciation: tor-'nA-(")dO
Function: noun
Inflected Form(s): plural -does or -dos
Etymology: modification of Spanish tronada thunderstorm, from tronar to thunder, from Latin tonare -- more at THUNDER
1 archaic : a tropical thunderstorm
2 a : a squall accompanying a thunderstorm in Africa b : a violent destructive whirling wind accompanied by a funnel-shaped cloud that progresses in a narrow path over the land
3 : a violent windstorm : WHIRLWIND
As you can see from this post and the previous, you may have correctly guessed that we had a bumpy night. All is well.
And despite the evidence of news interviews, it is not pronounced "tornader"...but they DO sound like freight trains!
Tornado
- Slava
- Great Grand Panjandrum
- Posts: 8123
- Joined: Thu Sep 28, 2006 9:31 am
- Location: Finger Lakes, NY
An interesting tie-in here is just how many English words beginning in "tor" relate to twisting. Though we call tornadoes "twisters," the "tor" here is a mistake and has nothing to do with the "tor" of, say, torque, torment, or torture.
Life is like playing chess with chessmen who each have thoughts and feelings and motives of their own.
-
- Great Grand Panjandrum
- Posts: 4423
- Joined: Fri Oct 09, 2009 6:16 pm
- Location: Land of the Flat Water
Re: Tornado
Main Entry: tor·na·do
Pronunciation: tor-'nA-(")dO
Function: noun
Inflected Form(s): plural -does or -dos
Etymology: modification of Spanish tronada thunderstorm, from tronar to thunder, from Latin tonare -- more at THUNDER
1 archaic : a tropical thunderstorm
2 a : a squall accompanying a thunderstorm in Africa b : a violent destructive whirling wind accompanied by a funnel-shaped cloud that progresses in a narrow path over the land
3 : a violent windstorm : WHIRLWIND
As you can see from this post and the previous, you may have correctly guessed that we had a bumpy night. All is well.
And despite the evidence of news interviews, it is not pronounced "tornader"...but they DO sound like freight trains!
As anyone who has lived through them knows, a
freight train is apt when describing them. It is interesting
that Hurricane comes from the Taino Indian word for their
god. The Plains Tribes don't have many words for
Tornado, and yet they are so common one would
think so.
-----please, draw me a sheep-----
Return to “Good Word Suggestions”
Who is online
Users browsing this forum: Baidu [Spider], Semrush [Bot] and 0 guests