Definition of
Spate
- (noun, event) the occurrence of a water flow resulting from sudden rain or melting snow
- (noun, event) a sudden forceful flow
- (noun, quantity) (often followed by `of') a large number or amount or extent
a deal of trouble
a lot of money
he made a mint on the stock market
see the rest of the winners in our huge passel of photos
it must have cost plenty
a slew of journalists
a wad of money
via WordNet, Princeton University
Synonyms of Spate
batch, deal, flock, freshet, good deal, great deal, hatful, heap, lot, mass, mess, mickle, mint, mountain, muckle, passel, peck, pile, plenty, pot, quite a little, raft, rush, sight, slew, stack, surge, tidy sum, upsurge, wad
Alternate forms of Spate
Hyponyms: debris storm, debris surge, deluge, flood, haymow, inundation, onrush, torrent
Hypernyms: flow, flowing, large indefinite amount, large indefinite quantity
Origin of the word Spate
- early 15c., originally Scottish and northern English, "a sudden flood, especially one caused by heavy rains or a snowmelt," of unknown origin. Perhaps from O.Fr. espoit "flood," from Du. spuiten "to flow, spout;" related to spout. Figurative sense of "unusual quantity" is attested from 1610s. more
via Online Etymology Dictionary, ©2001 Douglas Harper
Words that sound like Spate
s-shaped, sabaoth, sabbat, sabbath, sabbatia, sabot, sackbut, safety, safety hat, saphead, sapid, sapidity, sapota, sapote, sapwood, sauceboat, saucepot, sausage-shaped, saved, sawpit, scaphoid, scaphopod, scaphopoda, schizophyta, schizopoda, scoop out, sea boat, seabed, seafood, sepiidae, sept, sept. 11, septate, septet, septette, sexcapade, sexpot, shabuoth, shaft, shaped, shaved, shavuot, shavuoth, shebat, shevat, shift
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