typhoon

Pronunciation

• IPA: /taɪˈfun/; /taɪˈfuːn/ (UK)^[1]

Etymology

Its history mixes two sources.^[2][3] An earlier form touffon came, via an Indian language, from Arabic طُوفَان (ṭūfān, “storm”),^[2][3] itself from Ancient Greek τυφῶν (tuphôn, “whirlwind”).^[2][3][4] This was altered by influence of Cantonese toi fung “great wind”.^[2][3][5] Etymonline also notes an earlier English Tiphon “violent storm” (1550s), directly from the Greek.^[4]

Earliest recorded meaning

Etymonline records Tiphon for a violent storm or whirlwind in the 1550s.^[4] The form touffon first referred specifically to a severe storm in India.^[2][6]

Semantic evolution

The Indian storm word met the Chinese name for storms in the China seas, and the word settled on tropical cyclones of the western Pacific.^[2][6] Figuratively it can mean a whirlwind of activity.^[3]

Timeline

• 1550s – Tiphon, a whirlwind.^[4]
• 1588 – Touffon, a storm in the East Indies.^[4][2][6]
• 1771 – typhoon, according to Merriam-Webster.^[3]

Modern meaning

Noun

1. A tropical cyclone of the western Pacific or the China seas.
2. A violent storm or whirlwind.

Related words

• hurricane
• cyclone

References

1. [1] Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, Boston: Houghton Mifflin
3. [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
4. [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] Harper, Douglas, Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
5. [1] Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, New York: Random House
6. [1] [2] [3] Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press