Typhoon
Typhoon , noun
[Earlier tuffoon, tuffon, Portuguese tufão, Arabic tufān a violent storm; probably from Greek tyfw^n, tyfw^s, a violent whirlwind, that rushes upward from the earth, whirling clouds of dust (compare Typhus); or perhaps from Chin. t'ai-fung a cyclonic wind.]
A violent whirlwind; specifically, a violent whirlwind occurring in the Chinese seas.