maelstrom

English

Alternative forms

• maelström

Etymology

Old Dutch maelstrom, modern Dutch spelling maalstroom. → Danish malstrøm. → English maelstrom. Dutch malen (“to whirl, grind”) is from Proto-Germanic *malaną. Dutch stroom means stream. Compare German Mahlstrom.

Pronunciation

• IPA: /meɪlstrəm/

Noun

maelstrom (plural maelstroms)

1. A large and violent whirlpool.
   • 2001 — Eoin Colfer, Artemis Fowl, p 212

     A hulking shape burst through the doorway and hurtled down the corridor, leaving a maelstrom of air currents in his wake.

2. Any violent or turbulent situation.

Translations

large whirlpool

• Catalan: voràgine (ca) f
• Danish: malstrøm
• Dutch: maalstroom, moskstraumen, moskenstraumen
• Faroese: meldur (fo), meldurstreymur (fo), malustreymur (fo)
• Finnish: kurimus (fi), akanvirta (fi)
• German: Mahlstrom

• Norwegian: malstrøm (no), mælstrøm (no), malstraum (no)
• Portuguese: voragem (pt)
• Slovak: vír (sk) m
• Spanish: vorágine (es)
• Swedish: malström (sv)

any violent or turbulent situation

• Catalan: voràgine (ca) f
• Dutch: maalstroom
• Finnish: kurimus (fi)

• Norwegian: malstrøm (no), mælstrøm (no), malstraum (no)
• Spanish: vorágine (es)

See also

• Maelstrom on Wikipedia.Wikipedia
• Moskstraumen on the Dutch Wikipedia.nl.Wikipedia:Moskstraumen