Adjacent Words

Wind definitions

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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

WIND, n. [L., G. The primary sense is to move, flow, rush or drive along.]
1. Air in motion with any degree of velocity, indefinitely; a current of air. When the air moves moderately, we call it a light wind, or a breeze; when with more velocity, we call it a fresh breeze, and when with violence, we call it a gale, storm or tempest. The word gale is used by the poets for a moderate breeze, but seamen use it as equivalent to storm. Winds are denominated from the point of compass from which they blow; as a north wind; an east wind; a south wind; a west wind; a southwest wind, etc.
2. The four winds, the cardinal points of the heavens.
Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe upon these slain. Ezek 37.
This sense of the word seems to have had its origin with the orientals, as it was the practice of the Hebrews to give to each of the four cardinal points the name of wind.
3. Direction of the wind from other points of the compass than the cardinal, or any point of compass; as a compass of eight winds.
4. Breath; power of respiration.
If my wind were but long enough to say my prayers, I would repent.
5. Air in motion form any force or action; as the wind of a cannon ball; the wind of a bellows.
6. Breath modulated by the organs or by an instrument.
Their instruments were various in their kind, some for the bow, and some for breathing wind.
7. Air impregnated with scent.
A pack of dog-fish had him in the wind.
8. Any thing insignificant or light as wind.
Think not with wind or airy threats to awe.
9. Flatulence; air generated in the stomach and bowels; as, to be troubled with wind.
10. The name given to a disease of sheep, in which the intestines are distended with air, or rather affected with a violent inflammation. It occurs immediately after shearing.
Down the wind, decaying; declining; in a state of decay; as, he went down the wind. [Not used.]
To take or have the wind, or to get wind, to be divulged; to become public. The story got wind, or took wind.
In the winds eye, in seamens language, towards the direct point from which the wind blows.
Between wind and water, denoting that part of a ships side or bottom which is frequently brought above water by the rolling of the ship, or fluctuation of the waters surface.
To carry the wind, in the manege, is when a horse tosses his nose as high as his ears.
Constant or perennial wind, a wind that blows constantly from one point of the compass; as the trade wind of the tropics.
Shifting, variable or erratic winds, are such as are changeable, now blowing from one point and now from another, and then ceasing altogether.
Stated or periodical wind, a wind that constantly returns at a certain time, and blows steadily from one point for a certain time. Such are the monsoons in India, and land and sea breezes.
Trade wind, a wind that blows constantly from one point, such as the tropical wind in the Atlantic.

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

n
1: air moving (sometimes with considerable force) from an area of high pressure to an area of low pressure; "trees bent under the fierce winds"; "when there is no wind, row"; "the radioactivity was being swept upwards by the air current and out into the atmosphere" [syn: wind, air current, current of air]
2: a tendency or force that influences events; "the winds of change"
3: breath; "the collision knocked the wind out of him"
4: empty rhetoric or insincere or exaggerated talk; "that's a lot of wind"; "don't give me any of that jazz" [syn: wind, malarkey, malarky, idle words, jazz, nothingness]
5: an indication of potential opportunity; "he got a tip on the stock market"; "a good lead for a job" [syn: tip, lead, steer, confidential information, wind, hint]
6: a musical instrument in which the sound is produced by an enclosed column of air that is moved by the breath [syn: wind instrument, wind]
7: a reflex that expels intestinal gas through the anus [syn: fart, farting, flatus, wind, breaking wind]
8: the act of winding or twisting; "he put the key in the old clock and gave it a good wind" [syn: wind, winding, twist] v
1: to move or cause to move in a sinuous, spiral, or circular course; "the river winds through the hills"; "the path meanders through the vineyards"; "sometimes, the gout wanders through the entire body" [syn: weave, wind, thread, meander, wander]
2: extend in curves and turns; "The road winds around the lake"; "the path twisted through the forest" [syn: wind, twist, curve]
3: arrange or or coil around; "roll your hair around your finger"; "Twine the thread around the spool"; "She wrapped her arms around the child" [syn: wind, wrap, roll, twine] [ant: unroll, unwind, wind off]
4: catch the scent of; get wind of; "The dog nosed out the drugs" [syn: scent, nose, wind]
5: coil the spring of (some mechanical device) by turning a stem; "wind your watch" [syn: wind, wind up]
6: form into a wreath [syn: wreathe, wind]
7: raise or haul up with or as if with mechanical help; "hoist the bicycle onto the roof of the car" [syn: hoist, lift, wind]

Merriam Webster's

geographical name river W central Wyoming, the upper course of Bighorn River

Merriam Webster's

I. noun Usage: often attributive Etymology: Middle English, from Old English; akin to Old High German wint wind, Latin ventus, Greek a?nai to blow, Sanskrit v?ti it blows Date: before 12th century 1. a. a natural movement of air of any velocity; especially the earth's air or the gas surrounding a planet in natural motion horizontally b. an artificially produced movement of air c. solar wind, stellar wind 2. a. a destructive force or influence b. a force or agency that carries along or influences ; tendency, trend <withstood the winds of popular opinion — Felix Frankfurter> 3. a. breath 4a b. breath 2a c. the pit of the stomach ; solar plexus 4. gas generated in the stomach or the intestines <pass wind> 5. a. compressed air or gas b. archaic air 6. something that is insubstantial: as a. mere talk ; idle words b. nothing, nothingness c. vain self-satisfaction 7. a. air carrying a scent (as of a hunter or game) b. slight information especially about something secret ; intimation <got wind of the plan> 8. a. musical wind instruments especially as distinguished from strings and percussion b. plural players of wind instruments 9. a. a direction from which the wind may blow ; a point of the compass; especially one of the cardinal points b. the direction from which the wind is blowing • windless adjective • windlessly adverb II. Date: 15th century transitive verb 1. to detect or follow by scent 2. to expose to the air or wind ; dry by exposing to air 3. to make short of breath 4. to regulate the wind supply of (an organ pipe) 5. to rest (as a horse) in order to allow the breath to be recovered intransitive verb 1. to scent game 2. dialect to pause for breath III. verb (winded or wound; winding) Etymology: ¹wind Date: 1586 transitive verb 1. to cause (as a horn) to sound by blowing ; blow 2. to sound (as a call or note) on a horn <wound a rousing call — R. L. Stevenson> intransitive verb to produce a sound on a horn IV. verb (wound; also winded; winding) Etymology: Middle English, from Old English windan to twist, move with speed or force, brandish; akin to Old High German wintan to wind, Umbrian ohavendu let him turn aside Date: before 12th century transitive verb 1. a. obsolete weave b. entangle, involve c. to introduce sinuously or stealthily ; insinuate 2. a. to encircle or cover with something pliable ; bind with loops or layers b. to turn completely or repeatedly about an object ; coil, twine c. (1) to hoist or haul by means of a rope or chain and a windlass (2) to move (a ship) by hauling on a capstan d. (1) to tighten the spring of <wind a clock> (2) obsolete to make tighter ; tighten, tune (3) crank e. to raise to a high level (as of excitement or tension) — usually used with up 3. a. to cause to move in a curving line or path b. archaic to turn the course of; especially to lead (a person) as one wishes c. (1) to cause (as a ship) to change direction ; turn (2) to turn (a ship) end for end d. to traverse on a curving course <the river winds the valley> e. to effect by or as if by curving intransitive verb 1. bend, warp 2. a. to have a curving course or shape ; extend in curves b. to proceed as if by winding 3. to move so as to encircle something 4. to turn when lying at anchor V. noun Date: 14th century 1. a mechanism (as a winch) for winding 2. an act of winding ; the state of being wound 3. coil, turn 4. a particular method of winding

Britannica Concise

Movement of air relative to the surface of the earth. Wind is an important factor in determining and controlling climate and weather. It is also the generating force of most ocean and freshwater waves. Wind occurs because of horizontal and vertical differences in atmospheric pressure. The general pattern of winds over the earth is known as the general circulation, and specific winds are named for the direction from which they originate (e.g., a wind blowing from west to east is a westerly). Wind speeds are often classified according to the Beaufort scale.

NOAA Weather Glossary

Air in motion relative to the surface of the earth.

Oxford Reference Dictionary

1. n. & v. --n. 1 a air in more or less rapid natural motion, esp. from an area of high pressure to one of low pressure. b a current of wind blowing from a specified direction or otherwise defined (north wind; contrary wind). 2 a breath as needed in physical exertion or in speech. b the power of breathing without difficulty while running or making a similar continuous effort (let me recover my wind). c a spot below the centre of the chest where a blow temporarily paralyses breathing. 3 mere empty words; meaningless rhetoric. 4 gas generated in the bowels etc. by indigestion; flatulence. 5 a an artifically produced current of air, esp. for sounding an organ or other wind instrument. b air stored for use or used as a current. c the wind instruments of an orchestra collectively (poor balance between wind and strings). 6 a scent carried by the wind, indicating the presence or proximity of an animal etc. --v.tr. 1 exhaust the wind of by exertion or a blow. 2 renew the wind of by rest (stopped to wind the horses). 3 make breathe quickly and deeply by exercise. 4 make (a baby) bring up wind after feeding. 5 detect the presence of by a scent. 6 (past and past part. winded or wound) poet. sound (a bugle or call) by blowing. Phrases and idioms: before the wind helped by the wind's force. between wind and water at a vulnerable point. close to (or near) the wind 1 sailing as nearly against the wind as is consistent with using its force. 2 colloq. verging on indecency or dishonesty. get wind of 1 smell out. 2 begin to suspect; hear a rumour of. get (or have) the wind up colloq. be alarmed or frightened. how (or which way) the wind blows (or lies) 1 what is the state of opinion. 2 what developments are likely. in the wind happening or about to happen. in the wind's eye directly against the wind. like the wind swiftly. off the wind Naut. with the wind on the quarter. on a wind Naut. against a wind on either bow. on the wind (of a sound or scent) carried by the wind. put the wind up colloq. alarm or frighten. take wind be rumoured; become known. take the wind out of a person's sails frustrate a person by anticipating an action or remark etc. to the winds (or four winds) 1 in all directions. 2 into a state of abandonment or neglect. wind and weather exposure to the effects of the elements. wind band a group of wind instruments as a band or section of an orchestra. wind-break a row of trees or a fence or wall etc. serving to break the force of the wind. wind-chill the cooling effect of wind blowing on a surface. wind-cone = wind-sock. wind-force the force of the wind esp. as measured on the Beaufort etc. scale. wind-gap a dried-up former river valley through ridges or hills. wind-gauge 1 an anemometer. 2 an apparatus attached to the sights of a gun enabling allowance to be made for the wind in shooting. 3 a device showing the amount of wind in an organ. wind instrument a musical instrument in which sound is produced by a current of air, esp. the breath. wind-jammer a merchant sailing-ship. wind machine a device for producing a blast of air or the sound of wind. wind (or winds) of change a force or influence for reform. wind-rose a diagram of the relative frequency of wind directions at a place. wind-row a line of raked hay, corn-sheaves, peats, etc., for drying by the wind. wind-sail a canvas funnel conveying air to the lower parts of a ship. wind shear a variation in wind velocity at right angles to the wind's direction. wind-sleeve = wind-sock. wind-sock a canvas cylinder or cone on a mast to show the direction of the wind at an airfield etc. wind-tunnel a tunnel-like device to produce an air-stream past models of aircraft etc. for the study of wind effects on them. Derivatives: windless adj. Etymology: OE f. Gmc 2. v. & n. --v. (past and past part. wound) 1 intr. go in a circular, spiral, curved, or crooked course (a winding staircase; the path winds up the hill). 2 tr. make (one's way) by such a course (wind your way up to bed; wound their way into our affections). 3 tr. wrap closely; surround with or as with a coil (wound the blanket round me; wound my arms round the child; wound the child in my arms). 4 a tr. coil; provide with a coiled thread etc. (wind the ribbon on to the card; wound cotton on a reel; winding wool into a ball). b intr. coil; (of wool etc.) coil into a ball (the creeper winds round the pole; the wool wound into a ball). 5 tr. wind up (a clock etc.). 6 tr. hoist or draw with a windlass etc. (wound the cable-car up the mountain). --n. 1 a bend or turn in a course. 2 a single turn when winding. Phrases and idioms: wind down 1 lower by winding. 2 (of a mechanism) unwind. 3 (of a person) relax. 4 draw gradually to a close. wind-down n. colloq. a gradual lessening of excitement or reduction of activity. wind off unwind (string, wool, etc.). wind round one's finger see FINGER. wind up 1 coil the whole of (a piece of string etc.). 2 tighten the coiling or coiled spring of (esp. a clock etc.). 3 a colloq. increase the tension or intensity of (wound myself up to fever pitch). b irritate or provoke (a person) to the point of anger. 4 bring to a conclusion; end (wound up his speech). 5 Commerce a arrange the affairs of and dissolve (a company). b (of a company) cease business and go into liquidation. 6 colloq. arrive finally; end in a specified state or circumstance (you'll wind up in prison; wound up owing £100). wind-up n. 1 a conclusion; a finish. 2 a state of anxiety; the provocation of this. wound up adj. (of a person) excited or tense or angry. Etymology: OE windan f. Gmc, rel. to WANDER, WEND

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Wind Wind, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Wound (wound) (rarely Winded); p. pr. & vb. n. Winding.] [OE. winden, AS. windan; akin to OS. windan, D. & G. winden, OHG. wintan, Icel. & Sw. vinda, Dan. vinde, Goth. windan (in comp.). Cf. Wander, Wend.] 1. To turn completely, or with repeated turns; especially, to turn about something fixed; to cause to form convolutions about anything; to coil; to twine; to twist; to wreathe; as, to wind thread on a spool or into a ball. Whether to wind The woodbine round this arbor. --Milton. 2. To entwist; to infold; to encircle. Sleep, and I will wind thee in arms. --Shak. 3. To have complete control over; to turn and bend at one's pleasure; to vary or alter or will; to regulate; to govern. ``To turn and wind a fiery Pegasus.'' --Shak. In his terms so he would him wind. --Chaucer. Gifts blind the wise, and bribes do please And wind all other witnesses. --Herrick. Were our legislature vested in the prince, he might wind and turn our constitution at his pleasure. --Addison. 4. To introduce by insinuation; to insinuate. You have contrived . . . to wind Yourself into a power tyrannical. --Shak. Little arts and dexterities they have to wind in such things into discourse. --Gov. of Tongue. 5. To cover or surround with something coiled about; as, to wind a rope with twine. To wind off, to unwind; to uncoil. To wind out, to extricate. [Obs.] --Clarendon. To wind up. (a) To coil into a ball or small compass, as a skein of thread; to coil completely. (b) To bring to a conclusion or settlement; as, to wind up one's affairs; to wind up an argument. (c) To put in a state of renewed or continued motion, as a clock, a watch, etc., by winding the spring, or that which carries the weight; hence, to prepare for continued movement or action; to put in order anew. ``Fate seemed to wind him up for fourscore years.'' --Dryden. ``Thus they wound up his temper to a pitch.'' --Atterbury. (d) To tighten (the strings) of a musical instrument, so as to tune it. ``Wind up the slackened strings of thy lute.'' --Waller.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Wind Wind, v. i. 1. To turn completely or repeatedly; to become coiled about anything; to assume a convolved or spiral form; as, vines wind round a pole. So swift your judgments turn and wind. --Dryden. 2. To have a circular course or direction; to crook; to bend; to meander; as, to wind in and out among trees. And where the valley winded out below, The murmuring main was heard, and scarcely heard, to flow. --Thomson. He therefore turned him to the steep and rocky path which . . . winded through the thickets of wild boxwood and other low aromatic shrubs. --Sir W. Scott. 3. To go to the one side or the other; to move this way and that; to double on one's course; as, a hare pursued turns and winds. The lowing herd wind ?lowly o'er the lea. --Gray. To wind out, to extricate one's self; to escape. Long struggling underneath are they could wind Out of such prison. --Milton.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Wind Wind, n. The act of winding or turning; a turn; a bend; a twist; a winding.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Wind Wind (w[i^]nd, in poetry and singing often w[imac]nd; 277), n. [AS. wind; akin to OS., OFries., D., & G. wind, OHG. wint, Dan. & Sw. vind, Icel. vindr, Goth winds, W. gwynt, L. ventus, Skr. v[=a]ta (cf. Gr. 'ah`ths a blast, gale, 'ah^nai to breathe hard, to blow, as the wind); originally a p. pr. from the verb seen in Skr. v[=a] to blow, akin to AS. w[=a]wan, D. waaijen, G. wehen, OHG. w[=a]en, w[=a]jen, Goth. waian. [root]131. Cf. Air, Ventail, Ventilate, Window, Winnow.] 1. Air naturally in motion with any degree of velocity; a current of air. Except wind stands as never it stood, It is an ill wind that turns none to good. --Tusser. Winds were soft, and woods were green. --Longfellow. 2. Air artificially put in motion by any force or action; as, the wind of a cannon ball; the wind of a bellows. 3. Breath modulated by the respiratory and vocal organs, or by an instrument. Their instruments were various in their kind, Some for the bow, and some for breathing wind. --Dryden. 4. Power of respiration; breath. If my wind were but long enough to say my prayers, I would repent. --Shak. 5. Air or gas generated in the stomach or bowels; flatulence; as, to be troubled with wind. 6. Air impregnated with an odor or scent. A pack of dogfish had him in the wind. --Swift. 7. A direction from which the wind may blow; a point of the compass; especially, one of the cardinal points, which are often called the four winds. Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe upon these slain. --Ezek. xxxvii. 9. Note: This sense seems to have had its origin in the East. The Hebrews gave to each of the four cardinal points the name of wind. 8. (Far.) A disease of sheep, in which the intestines are distended with air, or rather affected with a violent inflammation. It occurs immediately after shearing. 9. Mere breath or talk; empty effort; idle words. Nor think thou with wind Of airy threats to awe. --Milton. 10. (Zo["o]l.) The dotterel. [Prov. Eng.] Note: Wind is often used adjectively, or as the first part of compound words. All in the wind. (Naut.) See under All, n. Before the wind. (Naut.) See under Before. Between wind and water (Naut.), in that part of a ship's side or bottom which is frequently brought above water by the rolling of the ship, or fluctuation of the water's surface. Hence, colloquially, (as an injury to that part of a vessel, in an engagement, is particularly dangerous) the vulnerable part or point of anything. Cardinal winds. See under Cardinal, a. Down the wind. (a) In the direction of, and moving with, the wind; as, birds fly swiftly down the wind. (b) Decaying; declining; in a state of decay. [Obs.] ``He went down the wind still.'' --L'Estrange. In the wind's eye (Naut.), directly toward the point from which the wind blows. Three sheets in the wind, unsteady from drink. [Sailors' Slang]

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Wind Wind, v. t. [From Wind, moving air, but confused in sense and in conjugation with wind to turn.] [imp. & p. p. Wound (wound), R. Winded; p. pr. & vb. n. Winding.] To blow; to sound by blowing; esp., to sound with prolonged and mutually involved notes. ``Hunters who wound their horns.'' --Pennant. Ye vigorous swains, while youth ferments your blood, . . . Wind the shrill horn. --Pope. That blast was winded by the king. --Sir W. Scott.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Wind Wind, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Winded; p. pr. & vb. n. Winding.] 1. To expose to the wind; to winnow; to ventilate. 2. To perceive or follow by the scent; to scent; to nose; as, the hounds winded the game. 3. (a) To drive hard, or force to violent exertion, as a horse, so as to render scant of wind; to put out of breath. (b) To rest, as a horse, in order to allow the breath to be recovered; to breathe. To wind a ship (Naut.), to turn it end for end, so that the wind strikes it on the opposite side.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Wind Wind, n. (Boxing) The region of the pit of the stomach, where a blow may paralyze the diaphragm and cause temporary loss of breath or other injury; the mark. [Slang or Cant]

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Out of harm's way, beyond the danger limit; in a safe place. Out of joint, not in proper connection or adjustment; unhinged; disordered. ``The time is out of joint.'' --Shak. Out of mind, not in mind; forgotten; also, beyond the limit of memory; as, time out of mind. Out of one's head, beyond commanding one's mental powers; in a wandering state mentally; delirious. [Colloq.] Out of one's time, beyond one's period of minority or apprenticeship. Out of order, not in proper order; disarranged; in confusion. Out of place, not in the usual or proper place; hence, not proper or becoming. Out of pocket, in a condition of having expended or lost more money than one has received. Out of print, not in market, the edition printed being exhausted; -- said of books, pamphlets, etc. Out of the question, beyond the limits or range of consideration; impossible to be favorably considered. Out of reach, beyond one's reach; inaccessible. Out of season, not in a proper season or time; untimely; inopportune. Out of sorts, wanting certain things; unsatisfied; unwell; unhappy; cross. See under Sort, n. Out of temper, not in good temper; irritated; angry. Out of time, not in proper time; too soon, or too late. Out of time, not in harmony; discordant; hence, not in an agreeing temper; fretful. Out of twist, winding, or wind, not in warped condition; perfectly plain and smooth; -- said of surfaces. Out of use, not in use; unfashionable; obsolete. Out of the way. (a) On one side; hard to reach or find; secluded. (b) Improper; unusual; wrong. Out of the woods, not in a place, or state, of obscurity or doubt; free from difficulty or perils; safe. [Colloq.] Out to out, from one extreme limit to another, including the whole length, breadth, or thickness; -- applied to measurements. Out West, in or towards, the West; specifically, in some Western State or Territory. [U. S.] To come out, To cut out, To fall out, etc. See under Come, Cut, Fall, etc. To put out of the way, to kill; to destroy. Week in, week out. See Day in, day out (above).

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

I. AIR (winds, winding, winded) Frequency: The word is one of the 1500 most common words in English. 1. A wind is a current of air that is moving across the earth's surface. There was a strong wind blowing... The leaves rustled in the wind... N-VAR 2. Journalists often refer to a trend or factor that influences events as a wind of a particular kind. The winds of change are blowing across the country... N-COUNT: N of n 3. If you are winded by something such as a blow, the air is suddenly knocked out of your lungs so that you have difficulty breathing for a short time. He was winded and shaken... The cow stamped on his side, winding him. VERB: be V-ed, V n 4. Wind is the air that you sometimes swallow with food or drink, or gas that is produced in your intestines, which causes an uncomfortable feeling. N-UNCOUNT 5. The wind section of an orchestra or band is the group of people who produce musical sounds by blowing into their instruments. ADJ: ADJ n 6. If someone breaks wind, they release gas from their intestines through their anus. PHRASE: V inflects 7. If you get wind of something, you hear about it, especially when someone else did not want you to know about it. (INFORMAL) I don't want the public, and especially not the press, to get wind of it at this stage. PHRASE: V inflects, PHR n 8. If you sail close to the wind, you take a risk by doing or saying something that may get you into trouble. Max warned her she was sailing dangerously close to the wind and risked prosecution. PHRASE: V inflects 9. to throw caution to the wind: see caution II. TURNING OR WRAPPING (winds, winding, wound) Frequency: The word is one of the 1500 most common words in English. 1. If a road, river, or line of people winds in a particular direction, it goes in that direction with a lot of bends or twists in it. The Moselle winds through some 160 miles of tranquil countryside... The convoy wound its way through the West Bank. ...a narrow winding road. VERB: V prep/adv, V way prep/adv, V-ing 2. When you wind something flexible around something else, you wrap it around it several times. The horse jumped forwards and round her, winding the rope round her waist. VERB: V n prep/adv 3. When you wind a mechanical device, for example a watch or a clock, you turn a knob, key, or handle on it several times in order to make it operate. I still hadn't wound my watch so I didn't know the time. VERB: V n • Wind up means the same as wind. I wound up the watch and listened to it tick... Frances took the tiny music box from her trunk and wound it up. PHRASAL VERB: V P n (not pron), V n P 4. To wind a tape or film back or forward means to make it move towards its starting or ending position. The camcorder winds the tape back or forward at high speed. VERB: V n adv

International Standard Bible Encyclopedia

wind (anemos:

1. Causes:

Unequal distribution of heat in the atmosphere causes currents of air or wind. The heated air rises and the air from around rushes in. The direction from which a current comes determines its name, as west wind coming from the West but blowing toward the East. When two currents of air of different directions meet, a spiral motion sometimes results.

See WHIRLWIND.

2. West Wind:

In Palestine the west wind is the most common. It comes from the sea and carries the moisture which condenses to form clouds, as it is turned upward by the mountains, to the cooler layers of the atmosphere. If the temperature reached is cool enough the cloud condenses and rain falls. Elijah looked toward the West for the "small cloud," and soon "the heavens grew black with clouds and wind" (1Ki 18:44 f). "When ye see a cloud rising in the west, straightway ye say, There cometh a shower; and so it cometh to pass" (Lu 12:54).

3. South Wind:

The south wind is frequent in Palestine. If it is slightly Southwest, it may bring rain, but if it is due South or Southeast, there is no rain. It is a warm wind bringing good weather. "When ye see a south wind blowing, ye say, There will be a scorching heat; and it cometh to pass" (Lu 12:55). In the cooler months it is a gentle, balmy wind, so that the "earth is still by reason of the south wind" (Job 37:17; compare So 4:16).

4. North Wind:

The north wind is usually a strong, continuous wind blowing down from the northern hills, and while it is cool it always "drives away rain," as correctly stated in Pr 25:23, the King James Version; yet it is a disagreeable wind, and often causes headache and fever. 5. East Wind:

The east wind or sirocco (from Arabic shark= "east") is the "scorching wind" (Jas 1:11) from the desert. It is a hot, gusty wind laden with sand and dust and occurs most frequently in May and October. The temperature in a given place often rises 15 or 20 degrees within a few hours, bringing thermometer to the highest readings of the year. It is customary for the people to close up the houses tightly to keep out the dust and heat. The heat and dryness wither all vegetation (Ge 41:6). Happily the wind seldom lasts for more than three days at a time. It is the destructive "wind of the wilderness" (Job 1:19; Jer 4:11; 13:24): "Yahweh caused the sea to go back by a strong east wind all the night" (Ex 14:21) for the children of Israel to pass; the "rough blast in the day of the east wind" (Isa 27:8). The strength of the wind makes it dangerous for ships at sea: "With the east wind thou breakest the ships of Tarshish" (Ps 48:7). Euraquilo or Euroclydon (Ac 27:14 the King James Version), which caused Paul's shipwreck, was an East-Northeast wind, which was especially dangerous in that region.

6. Practical Use:

The wind is directly of great use to the farmer in Palestine in winnowing the grain after it is threshed by treading out (Ps 1:4; 35:5; Isa 17:13). It was used as a sign of the weather (Ec 11:4). It was a necessity for traveling on the sea in ancient times (Ac 28:13; Jas 3:4), but too strong a wind caused shipwreck (Jon 1:4; Mt 8:24; Lu 8:23).

7. Scripture References:

The Scriptural references to wind show many illustrative and figurative uses:

(1) Power of God (1Ki 19:11; Job 27:21; 38:24; Ps 107:25; 135:7; 147:18; 148:8; Pr 30:4; Jer 10:13; Ho 4:19; Lu 8:25): "He caused the east wind to blow in the heavens; and by his power he guided the south wind" (Ps 78:26).

(2) Scattering and destruction: "A stormy wind shall rend it" (Eze 13:11; compare 5:2; 12:14; 17:21; Ho 4:19; 8:7; Jer 49:36; Mt 7:25).

(3) Uncertainty: "tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine" (Eph 4:14; compare Pr 27:16; Ec 1:6; Joh 3:8; Jas 1:6).

(4) Various directions: "toward the four winds of heaven" (Da 11:4; compare 8:8; Zec 2:6; Mt 24:31; Mr 13:27).

(5) Brevity: "a wind that passeth away" (Ps 78:39; compare 1:4; 35:5; 103:16).

(6) Nothingness: "Molten images are wind" (Isa 41:29; compare Jer 5:13).

Alfred H. Joy

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

I. n. 1. Air (in motion), draught, breeze, zephyr, puff of air, breath of air. 2. Breath, respiration. 3. Flatulence. II. v. a. 1. Coil, twine, twist, wreathe. 2. Turn in and out. III. v. n. 1. Twine, coil, twist, turn and twist, take a spiral course. 2. Meander, turn in and out, bend, curve, be devious, be tortuous.

1811 Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue

To raise the wind; to procure mony.

Foolish Dictionary

An aerial phenomenon, superinduced by an ephemeral agitation of the nebular strata, whereby air, (hot or cold), impelled into transitory activity, generates a prolonged passage through space, owing to certain occult ethereal stimuli, and results in zephyrs, breezes, blows, blow-outs, blizzards, gales, simoons, hurricanes, tornadoes or typhoons. Barred from Kansas Cyclone-cellars but frequently blended with Chicago tongue--canned or conversational.

Moby Thesaurus

Aqua-Lung, Vayu, Zephyr, Zephyrus, about ship, aerate, aerophone, air, air out, air-condition, air-cool, airify, allure, antelope, arch, arrow, artificial respiration, aspiration, asthmatic wheeze, back and fill, bagpipe, bait the hook, baloney, bay, bear away, bear off, bear to starboard, beat, beat about, beep, belch, bell, bend, bend back, bilge, birdlime, blah, blah-blah, blare, blast, blat, blow, blow a horn, blow the horn, blue darter, blue streak, bop, bosh, bow, box off, bray, break, breath, breath of air, breathing, bring about, bring round, broken wind, bugle, bull, bullshit, bunk, bunkum, burn out, burp, cannonball, cant, cant round, carillon, cast, cast about, catch, catch out, change course, change the heading, charge, circle, circulate, circumrotate, circumvolute, clarion, clue, cock, coil, come about, contort, corkscrew, cough, courser, crank, crap, crinkle, crook, cross-ventilate, cue, curl, curve, dart, debilitate, decoy, decurve, deflect, distort, divagate, do in, do up, dome, doodle, double a point, double reed, double-tongue, drift, eagle, electricity, embouchure, embow, encircle, enclose, enervate, enlace, enmesh, ensnare, ensnarl, entangle, entoil, entrap, entwine, envelop, enweb, err, eructation, excurse, exhalation, exhaust, expiration, express train, exsufflation, fag, fag out, fan, fart, fatigue, fetch about, fife, flag, flapdoodle, flash, flatulence, flatulency, flatuosity, flatus, flex, flute, frazzle, freshen, gas, gasp, gazelle, get up steam, gin, gird, girdle, go about, go adrift, go around, go astray, go round, greased lightning, greyhound, guff, gulp, gup, gybe, gyrate, gyre, hack, harass, hare, heave round, hiccup, hogwash, hokum, honk, hooey, hook, hook in, horn, hot air, hump, hunch, incurvate, incurve, indication, inflect, inhalation, inhalator, inkling, inspiration, insufflation, intimation, intort, inveigle, iron lung, jade, jet plane, jibe, jibe all standing, key, knock out, knock up, light, lightning, lime, lip, load, loop, lure, malarkey, meander, mercury, mesh, miss stays, misshape, moonshine, mouth-to-mouth resuscitation, mouthpiece, naught, net, nil, nix, noose, notion, overfatigue, overstrain, overtire, overweary, oxygen mask, oxygen tent, oxygenate, oxygenize, pant, peal, pererrate, piffle, pipe, pirouette, pivot, ply, poop, poop out, poppycock, prime, prostrate, puff, put about, put back, quicksilver, ramble, recurve, reed, reflect, reflex, refresh, respiration, retroflex, revolve, rocket, rot, rotate, round, round a point, rove, sag, scallop, scared rabbit, scat, screw, scuba, serpentine, set, sheer, shift, shit, shot, shriek, sigh, slew, slide, slink, snake, snare, snarl, sneeze, sniff, sniffle, sniggle, snore, snoring, snuff, snuffle, sound, sound a tattoo, sound taps, spin, spiral, spread the toils, squeal, steam up, sternutation, stertor, straggle, stray, streak, streak of lightning, striped snake, suggestion, surround, suspiration, swag, swallow, sweep, swerve, swing, swing round, swing the stern, swirl, swivel, tack, tangle, telltale, thought, throw about, thunderbolt, tire, tire out, tire to death, tommyrot, tongue, toot, tooter, tootle, torrent, torture, trap, trip, tripe, triple-tongue, trumpet, tucker, turn, turn a pirouette, turn around, turn back, turn round, tweedle, twine, twirl, twist, twist and turn, use up, valve, vault, veer, ventilate, wamble, wander, warm up, warp, weaken, wear, wear down, wear on, wear out, wear ship, weary, weave, wheel, wheeze, whirl, whistle, whorl, wilt, wind instrument, wind the horn, wind up, winnow, worm, wreathe, wring, yaw