Hello! This week on Ask a Teacher, we will answer a question from VSRC Murthy in India about some stormy weather.
Question:
Hello VOA Learning English,
I have a question about the differences and similarities among these words: “hurricanes,” “typhoons,” “tornadoes,” “cyclones,” and “thunderstorms.”
Thank you,
VSRC Murthy from Hyderabad, India.
Answer:
Thank you, VSRC Murthy! Your question is timed well. Powerful storms have been in the news recently, from a hurricane that hit the southern United States to a typhoon that blew into the Philippines, Vietnam and Thailand.
Which word you might use to describe a storm often depends on where you are in the world. Let’s start with hurricane.
Merriam-Webster Dictionary says that word means a tropical cyclone with winds of 119 kilometers an hour or greater, and usually including rain, thunder, and lightning. The term is…
