Dictionary

snowmelt en · NOUN

Pronunciation

• /ˈsnoʊˌmɛlt/ (General-American)

Etymology

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *sneygʷʰ- Proto-Indo-European *-os Proto-Indo-European *snóygʷʰos Proto-Germanic *snaiwaz Proto-West Germanic *snaiw Old English snāw Middle English snow English snow English melt English snowmelt From snow + melt.

Meanings

1. (uncountable, usually) Runoff from melting snow.
   • Outside, a wind from the south had picked up, a thawing wind that quickened the patter of snowmelt on the back patio. 2001, Jonathan Franzen, The Corrections:
   • Los Angeles would still be a piddling little town in a desert if it weren’t for Sierra snowmelt and city officials crafty enough to snooker eastern California farmers out of their water rights. 2023 August 6, Daniel Duane, “It’s August. Californians Are Still Skiing. Don’t Ask.”, in The New York Times:
   • The snowmelt causes the river to flood.

Forms

Relateds

thaw