cyclone
/ˈsaɪ.kloʊn/noun, verb
cyclone is spelled C-Y-C-L-O-N-E: 7 letters and 2 syllables. It appears 3.2 times per million words in written English, the 14,731st most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, cyclone means “Any weather phenomenon consisting of a system of winds rotating around a centre of low atmospheric pressure; a low pressure system” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of cyclone is cyclones.
How many letters and syllables are in cyclone?
| Letters | 7: C-Y-C-L-O-N-E |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 3.2 times per million words; the 14,731st most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is cyclone?
Cyclone appears 3.2 times per million words in written English, the 14,731st most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce cyclone?
- US /ˈsaɪ.kloʊn/
- UK /ˈsaɪ.kləʊn/
Cyclone has 2 syllables (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-cyclone.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of cyclone
- cyclones plural, present, singular, he/she/it
- cycloning participle, present
- cycloned participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does cyclone mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
Any weather phenomenon consisting of a system of winds rotating around a centre of low atmospheric pressure; a low pressure system.
Near-synonym: storm
- 2
A tropical cyclone occurring in the South Pacific or Indian Ocean.
Near-synonyms: typhoon, hurricane
- 3
informalThe more or less violent, small-scale circulations such as tornadoes, waterspouts, and dust devils.
- 4
informalA strong wind.
- 5
A cyclone separator; the cylindrical vortex tube within such a separator
verb
- 1
To separate using a cyclone separator.
- 2
To storm as a cyclone.
- 3
To whirl in spirals as a result of a cyclone or whirlwind-like force.
- 4
To storm wildly; to be in a frenzy.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Cyclone in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense rotating system of winds:
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does cyclone come from?
Coined by English scientist and merchant captain Henry Piddington, probably in the 1840s, and based on some term in Ancient Greek. Sources disagree on the date and on which Ancient Greek term, though it had to be something derived from either κύκλος (kúklos, “circle, wheel”) or κυκλόω (kuklóō, “go around in a circle, form a circle, encircle”), for example the present active participle κυκλῶν (kuklôn). See cycle and wheel.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).