cloud

I. noun Usage: often attributive Etymology: Middle English, rock, cloud, from Old English clūd; perhaps akin to Greek gloutos buttock Date: 14th century 1. a visible mass of particles of condensed vapor (as water or ice) suspended in the atmosphere of a planet (as the earth) or moon 2. something resembling or suggesting a cloud: as a. a light filmy, puffy, or billowy mass seeming to float in the air <

a cloud of blond hair

> <

a ship under a cloud of sail

> b. (1) a usually visible mass of minute particles suspended in the air or a gas (2) an aggregation of usually obscuring matter especially in interstellar space (3) an aggregate of charged particles (as electrons) c. a great crowd or multitude ; swarm <

clouds of mosquitoes

> 3. something that has a dark, lowering, or threatening aspect <

clouds of war

> <

a cloud of suspicion

> 4. something that obscures or blemishes <

a cloud of ambiguity

> 5. a dark or opaque vein or spot (as in marble or a precious stone) II. verb Date: 1562 intransitive verb 1. to grow cloudy — usually used with over or up <

clouded over before the storm

> 2. a. of facial features to become troubled, apprehensive, or distressed in appearance <

her face clouded with worry

> b. to become blurry, dubious, or ominous — often used with over <

the outlook is clouding over

> 3. to billow up in the form of a cloud transitive verb 1. a. to envelop or hide with or as if with a cloud <

smog clouded our view

> b. to make opaque especially by condensation of moisture <

steam clouded the windows

> c. to make murky especially with smoke or mist <

smoke clouded the sky

> 2. to make unclear or confused <

cloud the issue

> 3. taint, sully <

a clouded reputation

> 4. to cast gloom over <

cloud prospects for success

>