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A.Word.A.Day--typhoon

typhoon (tye-FOON) noun

A tropical cyclone in the northwest Pacific Ocean west of the International Date Line.

[From Cantonese toi fung, from Mandarin tai (great) + feng (wind) by influence of other terms (Greek typhon, Arabic/Urdu/Hindi tufan, et al.)]

Now you know what feng shui has in common with typhoon.
Hurricane or typhoon? It all depends on the location.

"Research has shown that one way to make peers feel inferior is to deny them the opportunity to have their say. Which is why getting trapped by a talking typhoon can leave you feeling defeated and dominated."
Rochell Denise Thomas; Putting the Brakes on a Motormouth: Cosmopolitan (New York); Dec 1, 1996.

"South Korea's most powerful typhoon on record left at least 110 people dead or missing and drove 25,000 from their homes, knocking down buildings, tossing ships and giant cranes around like toys and triggering floods."
Typhoon Batters South Korea; The New Zealand Herald (Auckland, New Zealand); Sep 15, 2003.

This week's theme: words originating in Cantonese.

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