Meaning & use
storm
Last updated
Meanings
nouncountable
A spell of severe weather with strong wind and usually heavy rain, snow or thunder.
Grammar: Countable: a storm, three storms.
Patterns
- a storm hits something
- weather the storm
A fierce storm knocked out power across the town.
We waited in the cabin until the storm passed.
Storms are expected along the coast tomorrow.
nouncountablefigurative
A sudden, strong outburst of feeling or public reaction.
Grammar: Usually followed by of: a storm of applause.
Patterns
- a storm of something
- a storm over something
The decision caused a storm of protest.
A storm of applause greeted the singer.
A media storm followed the announcement.
verbintransitive
To move somewhere angrily and noisily.
Grammar: Takes a direction word: storm out, storm off.
Patterns
- storm out of somewhere
- storm off
- storm into somewhere
He stormed out of the meeting without a word.
She stormed off after the argument.
The toddler stormed into his room and slammed the door.
verbtransitive
To attack a place suddenly and with great force, usually to take control of it.
Grammar: Takes an object: storm the castle.
Patterns
- storm something
- storm the gates
Soldiers stormed the fortress at dawn.
Fans stormed the field after the win.
Protesters stormed the lobby of the building.
Word forms
| plural | storms |
|---|---|
| third person singular | storms |
| past tense | stormed |
| past participle | stormed |
| -ing form | storming |
Common combinations
- weather the storm
- The small shop weathered the storm of the recession.
- a violent storm
- A violent storm tore the roof off the barn.
- storm out
- He stormed out after being criticized.
- a storm brews
- A storm was brewing over the hills.
- storm the stage
- Fans stormed the stage at the end of the concert.
- a storm of criticism
- The ad provoked a storm of criticism.
Synonyms and how they differ
- tempest
- Tempest is a literary word for a violent storm and sounds more dramatic than storm.
- gale
- A gale is specifically a very strong wind, while a storm may include rain or thunder as well.
- uproar
- Uproar is the noisy public reaction itself, so it fits the figurative sense but not weather.
- stomp
- Stomp stresses heavy footsteps, while storm stresses angry, forceful movement in general.
Opposites
Word family
- stormy adjective
- full of storms or violent argument
- stormily adverb
- in a violent or angry way
- storming noun
- a sudden forceful attack on a place
- thunderstorm noun
- a storm with thunder and lightning
- brainstorm verb
- to generate ideas as a group
Commonly confused: storm or stork?
storm vs stork
A stork is a tall wading bird, and the similar spelling can cause confusion with storm.
Practice
After the argument, she ___ out of the room and slammed the door.
Choose one answer.
Storm out means leave angrily and noisily. Strolled and slipped suggest calm or quiet movement, and stirred does not take out here.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “storm”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.