spate

Meaning

1. A (sudden) flood or inundation of water; specifically, a flood in or overflow of a river or other watercourse due to heavy rain or melting snow; (uncountable, archaic) flooding, inundation.
2. A sudden heavy downpour of rain.
3. A sudden increase or rush of something; a flood, an outburst, an outpouring.

flood

quite a little

tidy sum

good deal

heavy shower

Frequency

Pronounced as (IPA)

/speɪt/

The noun is derived from Middle English spate, spait (“a flood”), influenced by Scots spate (“torrent of water, flood; heavy downpour of rain; (figurative) bout of drinking; large crowd of people; flood of events, words, etc.”). The further etymology of the Middle English and Scots words is uncertain; they are possibly related to English spatter and Dutch spatten (“to spatter, splash”), possibly ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *sp(y)ēw, *spyū (whence English spit (“to evacuate (saliva or another substance) from the mouth, etc.”)), which is imitative of spitting. The verb is derived from the noun, probably influenced by Scots spate (“to flood, swell; to rain heavily; (figurative) to scold fiercely”).