maelstrom

Betekenis (Engels)

1. A large and violent whirlpool.
2. (figuratively) A chaotic or turbulent situation.

Concepten

maalstroom

dwarreling

kolk

wervelwind

vortex

moskenstraumen

draaikolk

moskstraumen

Synoniemen

whirlpool

vortex

whirl

eddy

whirlwind

chaos

turmoil

upheaval

tourbillon

convulsions

gyre

hurly-burly

swirl

Vertalingen

vorágine

tourbillon

Strudel

turbilhão

redemoinho

vórtice

vortice

Mahlstrom

remolino

voragem

torbellino

maëlstrom

vórtice

Wirbelwind

Uitgesproken als (IPA)

/ˈmeɪlˌstɹəm/

Etymologie (Engels)

Verwant aan Nederlands: maalstroom

Verwant aan Deens: malstrøm

Verwant aan Duits: Mahlstrom

Verwant aan Zweeds: malström

In summary

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