# tsunami

Pronunciation: say "soo-NAH-mee" /(t)suːˈnɑːmi/

## Noun

1. A very large, destructive wave (often a series of waves) usually caused by a major disturbance in the ocean, such as an undersea earthquake or volcanic eruption.
   - Simple: A huge, dangerous ocean wave caused by something like an undersea earthquake or volcano.
   - _The 2011 tsunami devastated communities along Japan's northeastern coast._
   - _Geologists study how tsunamis travel across entire ocean basins at the speed of a jet plane._
2. A large, generally unstoppable surge of something, such as emotion, activity, or demand.
   - Simple: A huge, powerful flood of something that is hard to stop.
   - _A tsunami of public outrage followed the company's announcement._
   - _The election unleashed a tsunami of misinformation across social media._

## Origin

Borrowed from Japanese tsunami (津波), which combines tsu ("harbour") and nami ("wave").

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/tsunami (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).