maelstrom
nounUK /ˈmeɪl.stɹəm/ · US /ˈmeɪl.stɹəm/
Etymology
The word was originally the name of a giant whirlpool off Norway in the Arctic Ocean which was said to destroy all ships that came close to it, likely the actual tidal pool system of Moskstraumen in Lofoten. It is borrowed from early modern Dutch maelstrom (“whirlpool”) (obsolete) (modern Dutch maalstroom), from malen (“to whirl around; to grind”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *melh₂- (“to crush, grind”)) + stroom (“stream; river; current or flow of water or other liquid”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *srew- (“to flow, stream”)), and was popularized by Edgar Allen Poe’s short story A Descent into the Maelström (1841). Cognates * Danish malstrøm * German Mahlstrom * Swedish malström
A large and violent whirlpool.
- To his right fell a gleaming sheet of water, and below it was a maelstrom, that made one giddy by its terrific gyrations.1905, James Edward Preston Muddock, “A Petrified Forest”, in The Sunless City […], London: F. V. White & Co., →OCLC:
- The falukah plunged over a waterfall and was almost submerged, was caught again in a maelstrom and went twirling on in the blackness.1914 November 14, Arthur Train, [Robert Williams Wood], “The Man Who Rocked the Earth”, in The Saturday Evening Post, volume 187, number 20, Philadelphia, Pa.; London: Curtis Publishing Company, →ISSN, →OCLC, chapter VI, page 65, column 2:
1 more example
- A hulking shape burst through the doorway and hurtled down the corridor, leaving a maelstrom of air currents in his wake.2001 April 26, Eoin Colfer, “Troll”, in Artemis Fowl, New York, N.Y.; Toronto, Ont.: Scholastic, published September 2001, →ISBN, page 212:
Figuratively A chaotic or turbulent situation.
- It was of Jean Paul's doing: some single billow in that vast World-Mahlstrom of Humour, with its heaven-kissing coruscations, which is now, alas, all congealed in the frost of death!1831, Thomas Carlyle, “Characteristics”, in Sartor Resartus: The Life and Opinions of Herr Teufelsdröckh. […], London: Chapman and Hall, […], →OCLC, 1st book, page 22:
- He escaped at last, dizzy from the maelstrom of conflicting emotions that had caught and whirled him.1922, Harry Leon Wilson, “‘Five Reels—500 Laughs’”, in Merton of the Movies, Garden City, N.Y.; Toronto, Ont.: Doubleday, Page & Company, →OCLC, page 310:
4 more examples
- The terminal station, Richmond, is managed by South West Trains, heirs to the London & South Western Railway, and here the District fades into a railway maelstrom, since Richmond is not only on the Waterloo-Reading line but is also the westerly terminus of the London Overground.2012, Andrew Martin, Underground Overground: A Passenger’s History of the Tube, London: Profile Books, →ISBN, page 80:
- A Twitter post intended to celebrate a funny photo of Abby, a “chonk” sea otter at the Monterey Bay Aquarium in California, instead stirred an online maelstrom of criticism, KNTV reports.2018 December 20, Don Sweeney, “Aquarium apologizes for ‘offensive’ Twitter post praising Abby the ‘thicc’ otter”, in The Sacramento Bee, archived from the original on 27 Sep 2020:
- An officer makes his way through the maelstrom to report a serious fire in one of the turrets. Rozhestvensky laconically orders him to try and put it out, as there isn't much he can do from inside the conning tower.2019 September 18, Drachinifel, 21:07 from the start, in Battle of Tsushima - When the 2nd Pacific Squadron thought it couldn't get any worse..., archived from the original on 04 Dec 2022:
- Setting our sights back on King's Landing, where the Last War will be waged, makes a lot of sense, even if it does feel a bit anticlimactic after last week's deadly, blustery maelstrom.2019 May 5, Danette Chavez, “Campaigns are Waged On and Off the Game Of Thrones Battlefield (Newbies)”, in The A.V. Club, archived from the original on 28 Jan 2021:
- Synonyms
- vortex
- Derived terms
- maelstromic