noun

typhoon

teye-FOON

noun

A powerful tropical storm that forms over the northwestern Pacific Ocean, equivalent to a hurricane elsewhere.

"The typhoon knocked out power across the island for days."

"Flights were cancelled as the typhoon approached the coast."

How to Use Typhoon

Learner’s notes

In plain EnglishThe name used for a hurricane-strength storm when it occurs in the northwest Pacific.

UK vs US

Typhoon, hurricane, and cyclone all describe the same type of storm — the name used just depends on which ocean it forms over.

Easily confused with

hurricane → cyclone →

Word Forms

typhooned past tense, typhoons plural, Typhoons plural, typhoons singular

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Fill the Gap

Can you complete this real example?

The _____ knocked out power across the island for days.

Etymology

The word likely traces back to an Arabic term for a violent storm, itself possibly rooted in a Chinese phrase for "big wind," and was reshaped in English under the influence of an old Greek word for whirlwind.

Rhymes for typhoon

noon moon soon hoon toon foon goon loon boon woon doon Yoon

See all rhymes for typhoon →