tsunami

Etymology

Borrowed from Japanese 津波 (tsunami), from 津 (tsu, “harbor”) +‎ 波 (nami, “wave”).

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) enPR: so͞o-nä'mi, tso͞o-nä'mi; IPA^(key): /suːˈnɑːmi/, /tsuːˈnɑːmi/
• (General American) enPR: so͞o-nä'mi, tso͞o-nä'mi; IPA^(key): /suˈnɑmi/, /tsuˈnɑmi/
• Rhymes: -ɑːmi

Noun

tsunami (plural tsunami or tsunamis)

1. A very large and destructive wave, generally caused by a tremendous disturbance in the ocean, such as an undersea earthquake or volcanic eruption. Tsunami are usually a series of waves, or wave train.
2. (figuratively) A large and generally unstoppable surge.
   • 2009, John Bernard Kelly, An Accidental Atheist: A Memoir, Aquinine books →ISBN, page 306

     It seemed that what started out as a handful of isolated cases gradually turned into a tsunami of complaints.

   • 2009, Marc Eliot, American Rebel: The Life of Clint Eastwood, Crown Archetype →ISBN, page 86

     It set off a tsunami of debate among the more esoteric critics, who either loved it or hated it but could not ignore it.

   • 2012, Demetra M. Pappas, The Euthanasia/Assisted-Suicide Debate, ABC-CLIO →ISBN, page 60

     The next decade would culminate in a tsunami of legislation, civil litigation, and criminal prosecutions in which assisted suicide was both criminalized (as in Michigan) and decriminalized (as in Oregon).

See also

• earthquake
• flood
• natural disaster
• seaquake
• seiche
• tidal wave
• tsunami earthquake
• waterquake

Further reading

• tsunami on Wikipedia.Wikipedia
• tsunami on Wikiversity.Wikiversity
• tsunami on Wikimedia Commons.Wikimedia Commons

Anagrams

• Mustain, Natsumi, manitus, santimu, utinams

Etymology

From English tsunami, borrowed from Japanese 津波 (tsunami), from 津 (tsu, “harbor”) +‎ 波 (nami, “wave”).

Noun

tsunami

1. a tsunami; a very large and destructive wave, generally caused by a tremendous disturbance in the ocean, such as an undersea earthquake or volcanic eruption

Etymology

From Japanese.

Noun

tsunami f

1. tsunami

Etymology

Borrowed from Japanese 津波.

Noun

tsunami

1. tsunami

Etymology

From Japanese 津波.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /tsuˈnaːmi/

• Audio

  (file)

Noun

tsunami m (plural tsunami's, diminutive tsunamietje n)

1. tsunami

Etymology

From Japanese.

Noun

tsunami

1. tsunami

Anagrams

• minusta, muistan, mustina

Etymology

From Japanese 津波 / 津浪 (つなみ, tsunami, “harbour wave”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /tsy.na.mi/

• Audio (FR)

  (file)

Noun

tsunami m (plural tsunamis)

1. tsunami

Further reading

• “tsunami” in le Trésor de la langue française informatisé (The Digitized Treasury of the French Language).

Etymology

Japanese

Noun

tsunami m (invariable)

1. tsunami

Romanization

tsunami

1. Rōmaji transcription of つなみ

Etymology

From Japanese 津波 / 津浪 (つなみ (tsunami, “seismic sea wave”, literally “harbour wave”)).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /tsuˈna.mʲi/

Noun

tsunami n (indeclinable)

1. tsunami

Alternative forms

• tsunâmi (rare)

Etymology

From Japanese 津波 / 津浪 (つなみ (“seismic sea wave”, literally “harbour wave”)).

Pronunciation

• (Brazil) IPA^(key): /t͡su.ˈnɐ.mi/, /t͡ʃi.su.ˈnɐ.mi/
• (Portugal) IPA^(key): /t͡su.ˈnɐ.mi/
• Hyphenation: tsu‧na‧mi

Noun

tsunami m or f (in variation) (plural tsunamis)

1. tsunami (large, destructive wave)

Etymology

From English tsunami, from Japanese 津波 / 津浪 (つなみ, tsunami, “harbour wave”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /(t)suˈna̠mi/

Noun

tsunami m (plural tsunamis)

1. tsunami

Etymology

From Japanese.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /tsʉːˈnɑːmɪ/, /tsɵˈnɑːmɪ/

Noun

tsunami c

1. tsunami