deluge

American  

[del-yooj, -yoozh, del-ooj, -oozh, dih-looj, -loozh] / ˈdɛl yudʒ, -yuʒ, ˈdɛl udʒ, -uʒ, dɪˈludʒ, -ˈluʒ /

noun

1. a great flood of water; inundation; flood.

2. a drenching rain; downpour.

3. anything that overwhelms like a flood.

   a deluge of mail.

   Synonyms:

   catastrophe, cataclysm

4. the Deluge. flood.

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verb (used with object)

deluged, deluging

1. to flood; inundate.

2. to overrun; overwhelm.

   She was deluged with congratulatory letters.

deluge ¹ British  

/ ˈdɛljuːdʒ /

noun

1. a great flood of water

2. torrential rain; downpour

3. an overwhelming rush or number

   a deluge of requests

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verb

1. to flood, as with water; soak, swamp, or drown

2. to overwhelm or overrun; inundate

Deluge ² British  

/ ˈdɛljuːdʒ /

noun

1. another name for the Flood

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Related Words

See flood.

Other Word Forms

• undeluged adjective

Etymology

Origin of deluge

First recorded in 1325–75; Middle English, from Old French, from Latin dīluvium “flood,” equivalent to dīluv-, base of dīluere “to wash away, dissolve” ( dī- di ² + -luere, combining form of lavere “to wash”) + -ium -ium

Explanation

Feeling overwhelmed, like you're underwater? You might be experiencing a deluge — like when you've been given a deluge of homework over vacation: a dozen term papers, two dozen books to read, and a mile-high stack of math problems. The noun deluge is an overwhelming amount of something in general, such as work, people, or questions. Because of its Latin roots, however, in particular it means an overwhelming amount of water. It comes from diluvian, which means flood. The verb deluge similarly means to overwhelm or inundate with something, particularly water. The hurricane deluged the island with rain. A deluge isn't always a bad thing, however. One thing most people would like to be deluged with? Money.

Example Sentences

Last April, a deluge in Philadelphia derailed the Dodgers and Tyler Glasnow in a frustrating defeat against the Phillies.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 17, 2026

The decision arrives not a moment too soon for the online encyclopedia, which has seen a deluge of hallucination-prone A.I.-written articles since ChatGPT’s launch.

From Slate • Apr. 1, 2026

Before the deluge of Scottish tries there was another examination of Scotland's resolve.

From BBC • Mar. 13, 2026

More companies have joined them in the days since the court’s decision, including FedEx, and lawyers are predicting a deluge of litigation to come.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 26, 2026

We were waked up some time in the middle of the night by a clap of thunder and a deluge of rain.

From "The Hiding Place" by Corrie ten Boom

Related Words

• douse
• drench
• engulf
• flood
• overflow
• overrun
• overwhelm
• soak
• submerge
• swamp