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Noun: waterspout  'wor-tu(r),spawt
  1. A tornado passing over water and picking up a column of water and mist
    "Sailors watched in awe as a waterspout formed in the distance"
     
  2. A channel through which water is discharged (especially one used for drainage from the gutters of a roof)
    "The waterspout directed rainwater away from the house's foundation"
     
  3. A heavy rainstorm
    "We got caught in a terrible waterspout on our way home";
    - downpour, cloudburst, deluge, torrent, pelter, soaker, gullywasher [US, informal]

Derived forms: waterspouts

Type of: conduit, rain, rainfall, tornado, twister

Encyclopedia: Waterspout