Origin and history of brainstorm

"soft, grayish mass filling the cranial cavity of a vertebrate," in the broadest sense, "organ of consciousness and the mind," Old English brægen "brain," from Proto-Germanic *bragnan (source also of Middle Low German bregen, Old Frisian and Dutch brein), a word of uncertain origin, perhaps from PIE root *mregh-m(n)o- "skull, brain" (source also of Greek brekhmos "front part of the skull, top of the head").

But Liberman writes that brain "has no established cognates outside West Germanic" and is not connected to the Greek word. More probably, he writes, its etymon is PIE *bhragno "something broken."

The custom of using the plural to refer to the substance (literal or figurative), as opposed to the organ, dates from 16c. The figurative sense of "intellectual power" is from late 14c.; the meaning "a clever person" is recorded by 1914.

To have something on the brain "be extremely eager for or interested in" is from 1862. Brain-fart "sudden loss of memory or train of thought; sudden inability to think logically" is by 1991 (brain-squirt is from 1650s as "feeble or abortive attempt at reasoning"). An Old English word for "head" was brægnloca, which might be translated as "brain locker." In Middle English, brainsick (Old English brægenseoc) meant "mad, addled."

Old English storm "tempest, violent disturbance of the atmosphere," often accompanied by high winds, rain, etc.; also "onrush, attack; tumult; disturbance," from Proto-Germanic *sturmaz "storm" (source also of Old Norse stormr, Old Saxon, Middle Low German, Middle Dutch, Dutch storm, Old High German sturm, German Sturm).

This is considered to be from PIE *stur-mo-, from root *(s)twer- (1) "to turn, whirl." Old French estour "onset, tumult," Italian stormo "a fight" are Germanic loan-words. Also compare stour (n.).

The figurative senses begin in late Old English: "disturbance, convulsion" in civil, political, social, or domestic life. Also in late Old English as "tumultuous flight or descent of hurled objects." The figurative meaning "tumultuous onrush" (of tears, indignation, etc.) is from c. 1600.

To take (something) by storm (1680s) is from the military sense (for which see storm (v.)). The U.S. colloquial adverbial phrase _______ up a storm, meaning to do the indicated action with violent or vehement energy, is from 1946.

Storm-wind "wind of a storm" is from 1798. Storm-door "outer or additional door to protect from inclement weather" is recorded by 1872; storm-window in a similar sense is attested from 1824. Storm-cellar, for protection in violent storms, is by 1887, American English. Storm-water "water from a storm" is from 1847; the coastal storm-surge is attested from 1872.

Storm-tossed (adj.) is from 1610s. Storm-bird for the petrel is by 1752. Storm-cloud, one that brings or threatens a storm, is by 1793.