What's the difference between deluge and spate?

Deluge


Definition:

  • (n.) A washing away; an overflowing of the land by water; an inundation; a flood; specifically, The Deluge, the great flood in the days of Noah (Gen. vii.).
  • (n.) Fig.: Anything which overwhelms, or causes great destruction.
  • (v. t.) To overflow with water; to inundate; to overwhelm.
  • (v. t.) To overwhelm, as with a deluge; to cover; to overspread; to overpower; to submerge; to destroy; as, the northern nations deluged the Roman empire with their armies; the land is deluged with woe.

Example Sentences:

  • (1) In Kew Gardens, west London, 18mm of rain fell in just an hour on Saturday afternoon with other deluges causing travel misery.
  • (2) The historic and devastating floods in Louisiana are the latest in a series of heavy deluges that some climate scientists warn will become even more common as the world continues to warm.
  • (3) Among their choicest memories from last year, they tell me, are watching shoals of goldfish swim down their street, and coming home to find Derrick's model boat collection bobbing on the deluge.
  • (4) But in recent weeks a deluge of "best ever" deals means borrowers can now access the lowest two-, three- and five-year fixed rates since 1989 when fixed-rate home loans became available, according to data provider Moneyfacts.
  • (5) At first, the sheer deluge of random faces, selfies, girls kissing other girls (is that a thing nowadays?)
  • (6) The Bank has been raising concerns about the potential liquidity risk in the financial system for some time but will now ask fund managers how they would handle a deluge of requests from investors to redeem their cash.
  • (7) Our helpline (0800 970 9690) has been noticeably busier in the last week as letters have landed on people’s doormats and we are set for a deluge of calls as a result of the chancellor’s comments today as people seek advice on how to sort out their tax affairs.
  • (8) Bloomsbury Auctions in Mayfair, which handled the sale, was deluged with interest in the lot which had been given a guide price of between £6000 and £8000.
  • (9) They could be seen as an incentive scheme, to make up for the fact that the pay is often less than in the private sector (though I'm not sure the swan marker would be deluged with offers outside the palace).
  • (10) The deluge of old images of the destruction of Sarajevo, the videos of Mladic talking to the soon-to-be-dead men and boys of Srebrenica , the scores of commentators discussing the legal technicalities of his extradition and indictment, the statements of politicians congratulating Serbia for arresting the war criminal who lived freely for 16 years, some people of Serbia and some Serbs in Bosnia demonstrating in support of Mladic – it all brings a new kind of pain, one that adds insult to injury.
  • (11) Now, after decades of remaining quietly out of the national spotlight, the gentle hillsides and country lanes of the Yorkshire Wolds are preparing for a deluge of attention brought on by interest in David Hockney's latest paintings.
  • (12) Gretchen Carlson's lawyer: 'deluge' of women have complaints about Ailes Read more Carlson’s lawyers, Nancy Erika Smith and Martin Hyman, said their client intends to pursue her right to a public jury trial.
  • (13) Sir John Hegarty, the president of the film jury at the Cannes Lions advertising festival, has warned that the deluge of internet campaigns is threatening to prevent traditional TV commercials getting the recognition they deserve at the industry's premier global awards.
  • (14) An insolvency specialist today warned of a "deluge" of business failures next year, saying the UK is in the mid-point of a W-shaped recession.
  • (15) That effort backfired as Israel faced a deluge of embarrassing revelations about the case which appeared to expose the detailed workings of its overseas intelligence agency in the most graphic detail, as well as the growing irritation of Israel's allies over the Mossad's behaviour.
  • (16) That’s largely based on extrapolating extreme – and unjustifiable – cases of abuse: as somebody who has been deluged with rightwing abuse, I’ve never tried to argue that those behind it are representative of the right.
  • (17) Still, she could have been little prepared for the deluge of publicity on Friday, when Argyll and Bute council was forced into a humiliating climbdown over a decision to effectively close the blog, by banning photography in the school dining hall.
  • (18) How do we sift through this deluge of data to find the right insights?
  • (19) Concerns about halal certifications have circulated among critics of Islam for years but became prominent last November after a South Australian dairy company was deluged with abuse on social media for deciding to certify its products.
  • (20) Despite the anticipated deluge of screening examinations in the next decade, there were only 17 fellowships that included at least 6 months of mammography identified in 15 (7%) of the institutions; only 11 of these were full-time 1-year breast imaging fellowships.

Spate


Definition:

  • (n.) A river flood; an overflow or inundation.

Example Sentences:

  • (1) In recent years, a spate of health care reform proposals have emerged on the American agenda.
  • (2) The processing centre been seized by more than a month of daily protests, as well as a spate of suicide attempts over the last 48 hours.
  • (3) The year since Jo Cox’s death has seen rapid political change around the world: unexpected election results, a rise in digital interference in democratic elections by foreign powers , and a spate of appalling terrorist attacks.
  • (4) There has been a spate of thefts of rhino horns and elephant tusks from European museums, zoos and auction houses in recent years, amid a rising illegal trade in poached or stolen ivory .
  • (5) A spate of suicides by employees of an electronics giant in China has fuelled concern about the pressures of factory life and the emotional vulnerability of young employees.
  • (6) Angry demonstrations over the government’s refusal to relieve Kobani , the Syrian canton under siege from the brutal group calling itself Islamic State (Isis), led to a spate of deaths.
  • (7) A series of measures have been brought in since the December attack aimed at making women safer, but despite these, there has been a spate of attacks on women in Delhi since the beginning of March, including four reported assaults on girls under 18.
  • (8) Rosenberg agreed, pointing out that the spate of bad news was falling at a critical time in the election cycle, when senior politicians had to finally decide whether to throw their hat in the ring.
  • (9) An estimate is made of the frequency and effects of spates.
  • (10) The service has been hit by a spate of station closures over the past 18 months, including TheJazz, OneWord, Core and Capital Life.
  • (11) It's the first interview he's done since his marriage and divorce and the split-up of the Ordinary Boys, and it all comes rushing out in a spate, a tangle of chronological confusions and jokes, and groans when I quote some of his old interviews back at him, and statements of contrition, and digressions about Dawkins or whatever, and here's the confounding thing - he's really nothing like I was expecting, not indie-boy sulky, or attempting to play it cool, he's just talkative and engaging, and he has a sense of humour about himself that, from reading his previous interviews, I wouldn't have even guessed at.
  • (12) Calls are mounting for hardline Jewish settlers to be classified as terrorists after a spate of attacks on Palestinian property in the West Bank and Israel , and threats of violence towards Israeli soldiers.
  • (13) As in journals elsewhere there followed a spate of articles reporting various aspects of cocaine and its usage, including an abortive attempt to find an alternative agent.
  • (14) Merkel’s office has not commented on her dictionary nomination so far, though they might arguably have been able to insist the word was rude or discriminatory, on the same grounds that the nominated word “Alpha Kevin”, meaning the “thickest person of all” was removed from Langenscheidt list, after a reported spate of complaints from people called Kevin, or their parents.
  • (15) Shirin Ebadi , the Iranian Nobel peace prizewinner, joined human rights organisations in February this year in appealing to Iran to impose a moratorium on executions – but after a brief pause following a spate of adverse international publicity, the pace of judicial killings has accelerated again.
  • (16) A spate of US companies have sought acquisitions in the UK and elsewhere this year to gain a lower rate of corporation tax.
  • (17) The coalition's radical shake-up of the planning system was designed to unleash a spate of new housebuilding.
  • (18) The chair of the Senate subcommittee on privacy, technology and the law wrote to the company last month setting out ten questions after a spate of incidents that he said indicated a “troubling disregard for customers’ privacy”.
  • (19) "A toxic mix of gold, greed and alcohol has resulted in a spate of brutal murders in the interior," the newspaper reported, cataloguing killings involving miners, jewellers and shopkeepers working at the gold mines.
  • (20) Donald Trump has made the most direct appeal of his campaign to African American voters as he battles to offset dismal polling among black voters and draw political capital from a recent spate of racially charged unrest in the city of Milwaukee, Wisconsin.