MEANING
1. A powerful whirlpool with violently swirling water that can draw objects toward its center.
2. A state of intense confusion, conflict, or upheaval that seems to engulf those involved.
Use it for
describing violent rotating water; portraying a dangerous vortex at sea; showing a boat drawn into turbulent circulationConveys engulfing, violent motion in water or in a chaotic situation. Writing functions: Violent swirling water / Turmoil.
Words that belong together
- a swirling maelstrom
- the maelstrom below
- drawn into a maelstrom
On the page
Broken planks spun in the maelstrom below the rocks.
The boat circled helplessly at the edge of the maelstrom.
The evacuation became a maelstrom of rumors and shouted instructions.
She kept one calm thought alive inside the maelstrom of grief.
Word forms
- Base
- maelstrom
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Usage notes
Countable noun: maelstrom, maelstroms. Often a maelstrom of something figuratively. Register: literary. Commonness: moderately common (dictionary-informed qualitative editorial estimate; not a measured frequency).
Practice this word in a sentenceYour margin notes
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