cat|a|ract

cat|a|ract
cat|a|ract «KAT uh rakt», noun.
1. a) a large, steep waterfall: »

Venezuela has the world's tallest cataract in Angel Falls, where water drops more than 3,000 feet (Newsweek).

 b) a violent rush or downpour of water; flood: »

Cataracts of rain flooded the streets. Figurative. The cataract of the cliff of heaven fell blinding off the brink (G. K. Chesterton).

 SYNONYM(S): torrent, deluge. c) a series of rapids in a river; white water.
2. a disease of the eye in which the lens becomes cloudy, making a person partly or entirely blind: »

Cataract robs sight by clouding the lens of the eye so that insufficient light is able to fall on the sensitive retina (Science News Letter).

╂[< Latin catarrhācta < Greek katarrhēs, ultimately < kata- down + rh dash]

Useful english dictionary. 2012.

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Look at other dictionaries:

  • cat|a|ract|al — «KAT uh RAK tuhl», adjective. of or resembling a cataract: »The sea swept…with a cataractal fury (Illustrated London News) …   Useful english dictionary

  • cat·a·ract — /ˈkætəˌrækt/ noun, pl racts [count] 1 medical : a condition in which a part of your eye (called the lens) becomes cloudy and you cannot see well often plural His grandmother developed cataracts. 2 literary : a large waterfall …   Useful english dictionary

  • ract — cat·a·ract·ous; cat·a·ract; tet·ract; cat·a·ract·al; …   English syllables

  • cat — cat·a·chres·ti·cal; cat·a·chres·ti·cal·ly; cat·a·clas·mic; cat·a·clys·mal; cat·a·fal·co; cat·a·lat·ic; cat·a·lep·ti·cal·ly; cat·a·logu·er; cat·a·logu·ize; cat·a·me·ni·al; cat·am·nes·tic; cat·a·ract·al; cat·ar·rhin·i·an; cat·a·stroph·i·cal;… …   English syllables

  • cataract — cat·a·ract …   English syllables

  • cataractal — cat·a·ract·al …   English syllables

  • cataract — cat•a•ract [[t]ˈkæt əˌrækt[/t]] n. 1) a descent of water over a steep surface; a waterfall, esp. one of considerable size 2) any furious rush or downpour of water; deluge 3) oph a) an abnormality of the eye characterized by opacity of the lens b) …   From formal English to slang

  • cataract — cat|a|ract [ˈkætərækt] n [Date: 1400 1500; : Latin; Origin: cataracta waterfall, castle gate that drops from above , from Greek, from katarassein to strike down , from kata ( CATACLYSM) + arassein to strike ;] [Sense: 1; Origin: because a… …   Dictionary of contemporary English

  • cataract — cat|a|ract [ kætə,rækt ] noun count 1. ) a medical condition affecting your eyes in which they become white and you gradually lose the ability to see 2. ) LITERARY a large WATERFALL …   Usage of the words and phrases in modern English

  • cataractous — cat·a·ract·ous …   English syllables

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