flood
flood
Pronunciation
flood: /flʌd/
flud: /flʌd/
/f/ - voiceless labiodental fricative
/l/ - voiced alveolar lateral approximant
/ʌ/ - near-open central unrounded vowel
/d/ - voiced alveolar plosive
Word Form Variations
Noun:
Singular: flood
Plural: floods
Verb:
Base form: flood
Third-person singular present: floods
Present participle: flooding
Past tense: flooded
Past participle: flooded
Definitions, Synonyms and Antonyms
Noun
A large amount of water that overflows from a river, lake, or ocean, or that accumulates on land where it is usually dry.
Synonyms: deluge, inundation, overflow, torrent
Antonyms: drought, scarcity, aridity
An overwhelming quantity or outpouring of something, often abstract.
Synonyms: abundance, deluge, glut, torrent, surge
Antonyms: dearth, lack, scarcity, trickle
Verb
To cover or submerge with a large amount of water.
Synonyms: inundate, deluge, immerse, drench
Antonyms: drain, dry, dehydrate
To fill or overwhelm with a great quantity or number of something.
Synonyms: inundate, engulf, swamp, overwhelm, surge
Antonyms: deplete, empty, clear, subside
Examples of Use
Books:
"He remembered the flood of memories that had rushed back when he revisited his childhood home, a mix of joy and lingering sadness." (From a work of fiction exploring themes of nostalgia)
Newspapers:
"Heavy rains caused a sudden flood in the low-lying areas of the city, displacing hundreds of residents and leading to significant infrastructure damage." (The Daily Chronicle, May 2024)
Online Publications:
"Tech companies are facing a flood of new regulations regarding data privacy, prompting a scramble to update their policies and systems." (Wired.com, July 2025)
Entertainment Mediums and Platforms:
Film: In the movie Noah (2014), the central plot revolves around a catastrophic flood that purifies the world.
Music: The song "Have You Ever Seen the Rain?" by Creedence Clearwater Revival contains the line, "I wanna know, have you ever seen the rain / Comin' down on a sunny day / Yesterday, and days before / Sun is cold and rain is hot / I know, been that way for all my time / 'Til forever on it goes through the circle, flood and fire."
Video Games: In games like The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker, a significant portion of the game world is submerged due to a great flood.
General Public Discourse:
"After the celebrity's controversial statement, there was a flood of negative comments across social media platforms."
"The aid organizations are preparing for a potential flood of refugees if the conflict escalates further."
"With the holiday season approaching, retailers are expecting a flood of online orders."
10 Quotes Using Flood
"There is a tide in the affairs of men, Which taken at the flood, leads on to fortune." (William Shakespeare, Julius Caesar)
"We must build dikes of courage to hold back the flood of fear." (Martin Luther King, Jr.)
"God has cared for these trees, saved them from drought, disease, avalanches, and a thousand tempests and floods. But he cannot save them from fools." (John Muir)
"It is as if my life were magically run by two electric currents: joyous positive and despairing negative - whichever is running at the moment dominates my life, floods it." (Sylvia Plath)
"What greater flood can there be than the flood of ideas? How quickly they submerge all that they set out to destroy, how rapidly do they create terrifying depths?" (Victor Hugo, Les Misérables)
"The moon is at her full, and riding high, Floods the calm fields with light." (William Cullen Bryant)
"Eventually, all things merge into one, and a river runs through it. The river was cut by the world's great flood and runs over rocks from the basement of time." (Norman Maclean, A River Runs Through It)
"The moment we begin to fear the opinions of others and hesitate to tell the truth that is in us, and from motives of policy are silent when we should speak, the divine floods of light and life no longer flow into our souls." (Elizabeth Cady Stanton1)
"Noah came before the flood. I have come before the fire." (Joseph Smith, Jr.)
"The flood that begins in inches can swiftly become miles of devastation." (AIGIFT)
Etymology
The word "flood" has a long history, tracing its roots back to ancient Germanic languages.
In simple terms, "flood" comes from the Old English word "flōd." This Old English term was very similar in meaning to what we understand as "flood" today, referring to a large flow of water, especially one that overflows land that is usually dry. It also carried the meaning of a "tide" or a "deluge," and was specifically used to refer to "Noah's Flood" from the Bible.
This Old English "flōd" itself came from an even older source, a Proto-Germanic word "flōduz," which had the same core meaning of "flowing water" or "deluge." Interestingly, this Proto-Germanic word is related to other words that describe movement or liquidity, like "flow" and "float," and even has connections to Latin words like fluctus (wave) and flumen (river). This shows how the idea of moving water has been consistently linked across different languages.
So, the first known uses and meanings of "flood" were very much about water overflowing its usual boundaries, whether it was a natural event like a river bursting its banks, the incoming tide, or the mythical great flood that covered the earth. Over time, the word also developed a figurative sense, around the mid-14th century, to describe an overwhelming quantity or abundance of anything, not just water (like a "flood of emotions").
Phrases + Idioms Containing Flood
A flood of tears: A sudden, overwhelming outpouring of crying.
A flood of memories: A sudden, overwhelming return of many past recollections.
To flood in/out: To enter or exit in large numbers or quantities.
To flood the market: To supply a market with an excessive amount of a product, often causing prices to fall.
To flood the zone: (Informal) To overwhelm an area or situation with a large number of resources or people.
To open the floodgates: To allow something previously restrained or held back to pour out or begin.
Before the flood: (Figurative) Referring to a very long time ago, implying an ancient or prehistoric time, often specifically referencing the biblical Great Flood.
To be in a flood of something: To be overwhelmed by a large quantity of something, usually abstract (e.g., "in a flood of light").
The great flood: A common reference to the biblical story of Noah's Ark.
Flood tide: The incoming tide; also used figuratively to describe a peak or surge of something.
Vocabulary-Based Stories from SEA
Source Information
Definition of flood from The Academic Glossary at Self Exploration Academy, a Urikville Press Publication. © All rights reserved.
