Definition of "flood"

a covenant never to destroy the earth again by flood

1667, John Milton, “Book X”, in Paradise Lost. […], London: […] [Samuel Simmons], […]; republished as Paradise Lost in Ten Books: […], London: Basil Montagu Pickering […], 1873,

Carried somehow, somewhither, for some reason, on these surging floods, were these travelers, of errand not wholly obvious to their fellows, yet of such sort as to call into query alike the nature of their errand and their own relations.

1910, Emerson Hough, chapter II, in The Purchase Price: Or The Cause of Compromise, Indianapolis, Ind.: The Bobbs-Merrill Company

Floods in northern India, mostly in the small state of Uttarakhand, have wrought disaster on an enormous scale. The early, intense onset of the monsoon on June 14th swelled rivers, washing away roads, bridges, hotels and even whole villages. Rock-filled torrents smashed vehicles and homes, burying victims under rubble and sludge.

2013 June 29, “High and wet”, in The Economist, volume 407, number 8842, page 28

China's Ministry of Water Resources Saturday warned that floods are expected to hit the country and called on relevant departments to make preparation.Heavy rains have hit parts of southern, eastern and central China since Wednesday, pushing water levels in some rivers well above warning lines, the ministry said.China entered its flood season on Saturday, four days earlier than previous years, and the country may suffer from more and stronger rain as well as floods with more extreme weather forecast for the flood season, the ministry warned.

2020 March 29, “China enters flood season”, in China Internet Information Center‎

Deregulation of financial markets laid the groundwork for the subprime crisis in the United States, while a badly designed euro contributed to the debt crisis in Greece, and the Schengen system of open borders made it difficult to control the flood of refugees in Europe.

2016 December 6, Francis Fukuyama, “The Dangers of Disruption”, in The New York Times‎

There is a tide in the affairs of men, / Which, taken at the flood, leads on to fortune.

1599 (first performance), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Iulius Cæsar”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, [Act IV, scene iii]

It was ebb tide when she touched, and it was supposed that when the flood made she would float off again.

1887, Harriet W. Daly, Digging, Squatting, and Pioneering Life in the Northern Territory of South Australia, page 217

The flood had made, the wind was nearly calm, and being bound down the river, the only thing for us was to come to and wait for the turn of the tide.

1899 February, Joseph Conrad, “The Heart of Darkness”, in Blackwood’s Edinburgh Magazine, volume CLXV, number M, New York, N.Y.: The Leonard Scott Publishing Company, […], part I, page 193

Who beheld from the safe shore their floating carcasses and broken chariot-wheels. So thick bestrown, abject and lost, lay these, covering the flood, under amazement of their hideous change.

1667, John Milton, “(please specify the book number)”, in Paradise Lost. […], London: […] [Samuel Simmons], […]; republished as Paradise Lost in Ten Books: […], London: Basil Montagu Pickering […], 1873,

Blackburn offered nothing going forward in the opening period and that continued after the break, encouraging City to flood forward.

2011 October 1, David Ornstein, “Blackburn 0 - 4 Man City”, in BBC Sport‎

The iconic Glenfinnan Viaduct was flooded with blue light to show support for the National Health Service staff treating Coronavirus patients.

2020 April 22, “Glenfinnan turns blue to honour NHS workers”, in Rail, page 9

There's also a spam filter in the code now, so if someone attempts to flood people's screens with macros or a bot, everything after the first few lines is thrown away.

1998, Dr. Cat, “Furry web site plug”, in alt.fan.furry (Usenet)