- [countable, uncountable] a grey or white mass that floats in the sky, made of very small drops of water
- Dark clouds were gathering in the west.
- The cloud cover is quite dense today.
- black/grey clouds
- thick/dense cloud
- The sun went behind a cloud.
- It was scorching and there wasn't a cloud in the sky.
- in cloud The plane was flying in cloud most of the way.
- through the clouds She could see the sun through the clouds.
Collocations The weatherThe weatherGood weathersee also storm cloud, thundercloud- be bathed in/bask in/be blessed with/enjoy bright/brilliant/glorious sunshine
- the sun shines/warms something/beats down (on something)
- the sunshine breaks/streams through something
- fluffy/wispy clouds drift across the sky
- a gentle/light/stiff/cool/warm/sea breeze blows in/comes in off the sea
- the snow crunches beneath/under somebody’s feet/boots
- thick/dark/storm clouds form/gather/roll in/cover the sky/block out the sun
- the sky darkens/turns black
- a fine mist hangs in the air
- a dense/heavy/thick fog rolls in
- the rain falls/comes down (in buckets/sheets)/pours down
- snow falls/comes down/covers something
- the wind blows/whistles/howls/picks up/whips through something/sweeps across something
- strong/gale-force winds blow/gust (up to 80 mph)
- a storm is approaching/is moving inland/hits/strikes/rages
- thunder rolls/rumbles/sounds
- (forked/sheet) lightning strikes/hits/flashes
- a (blinding/snow) blizzard hits/strikes/blows/rages
- a tornado touches down/hits/strikes/destroys something/rips through something
- forecast/expect/predict rain/snow/a category-four hurricane
- (North American English) pour (down)/ (British English) pour (down) with rain
- get caught in/seek shelter from/escape the rain
- be covered/shrouded in mist/a blanket of fog
- be in for/brave/shelter from a/the storm
- hear rolling/distant thunder
- be battered/buffeted by strong winds
- (British English) be blowing a gale
- battle against/brave the elements
- the sun breaks through the clouds
- the sky clears/brightens (up)/lightens (up)
- the clouds part/clear
- the rain stops/lets up/holds off
- the wind dies down
- the storm passes
- the mist/fog lifts/clears
Extra ExamplesTopics Weathera2- Rain clouds were looming on the horizon.
- The clouds broke a little, and the sun came out.
- Thick cloud hung over the moor.
- We were flying above the clouds.
- White clouds scudded across the sky.
- a layer of high cloud
- skies of broken cloud
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective- dense
- heavy
- thick
- …
- band
- bank
- blanket
- …
- seed
- form
- gather
- mass
- …
- bank
- cover
- layer
- …
- above the clouds
- below the clouds
- through the clouds
- …
- a break in the cloud
- a break in the clouds
- [countable] a large mass of something in the air, for example dust or smoke, or a number of insects flying all together
- a dust cloud
- The bees flew out of their hives, forming a thick black cloud.
- cloud of something They watched the car disappearing in a cloud of dust.
- I saw an enormous cloud of smoke rising over the city.
- The sky turned dark as a great cloud of locusts blocked out the sun.
Extra Examples- a great cloud of black smoke
- a thick cloud of steam
- The wind blew across the beach, forming clouds of sand.
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective- great
- huge
- dense
- …
- create
- form
- belch
- …
- cloud of
- [countable] something that makes you feel sad or anxious
- Her father's illness cast a cloud over her wedding day.
- The only dark cloud on the horizon was that they might have to move house.
- He still has a cloud of suspicion hanging over him.
- the cloud[singular] a network of servers (= computers that control or supply information to other computers) on which data and software can be stored or managed and to which users have access over the internet
- Key company documents are now stored in the cloud, so you no longer need to save them to your computer’s hard drive.
see also tag cloud
Word OriginOld English clūd ‘mass of rock or earth’; probably related to clot. Sense (1) dates from Middle English.
Idioms
See cloud in the Oxford Advanced American DictionarySee cloud in the Oxford Learner's Dictionary of Academic Englishevery cloud has a silver lining
- (saying) every sad or difficult situation has a positive side
have your head in the clouds
- to be thinking about something that is not connected with what you are doing
- to have ideas, plans, etc. that are not realistic
on cloud nine
- (old-fashioned, informal) extremely happy
under a cloud
- if somebody is under a cloud, other people think that they have done something wrong and do not trust them
- She left the company under a cloud.
Check pronunciation:
cloud