Wiktionary
n. A sudden, rapid flood, usually of short duration and local impact
WordNet
n. a sudden local flood of great volume and short duration [syn: flashflood]
Wikipedia
A flash flood is a rapid flooding of geomorphic low-lying areas: washes, rivers, dry lakes and basins. It may be caused by heavy rain associated with a severe thunderstorm, hurricane, tropical storm, or meltwater from ice or snow flowing over ice sheets or snowfields. Flash floods may occur after the collapse of a natural ice or debris dam, or a human structure such as a man-made dam, as occurred before the Johnstown Flood of 1889. Flash floods are distinguished from regular floods by a timescale of less than six hours. The water that is temporarily available is often used by foliage with rapid germination and short growth cycles, and by specially adapted animal life.
Usage examples of "flash flood".
As a flash flood cuts down a ravine, clearing all debris along with the live trees that it tears up from the banks, so I raced.
The pain washed my fury away like dandelions before a flash flood.
If its raining there, we could get a flash flood just as sure as if it were raining directly on top of us.
The Derry News would later write that the supports of the Canal's underground portion, weakened by the savage assault of what amounted to a flash flood, simply collapsed.
But I do think that the walls of this gully were sculpted by water, and it would be a shame if all our plans were laid to waste by a flash flood.
His toes still burned from the Antarctic episode and his back was very sore from his being bounced around in the flash flood.
Its roots had been exposed by the sudden erosion of the flash flood, and further undermined by the river's assault on its bank.
The muddy channels were shallow, yet the danger of a flash flood was very real.