Snow line

Snow line
Snow Snow, n. [OE. snow, snaw, AS. sn[=a]w; akin to D. sneeuw, OS. & OHG. sn[=e]o, G. schnee, Icel. sn[ae]r, snj[=o]r, snaj[=a]r, Sw. sn["o], Dan. snee, Goth. snaiws, Lith. sn["e]gas, Russ. snieg', Ir. & Gael. sneachd, W. nyf, L. nix, nivis, Gr. acc. ni`fa, also AS. sn[=i]wan to snow, G. schneien, OHG. sn[=i]wan, Lith. snigti, L. ningit it snows, Gr. ni`fei, Zend snizh to snow; cf. Skr. snih to be wet or sticky. [root]172.] 1. Watery particles congealed into white or transparent crystals or flakes in the air, and falling to the earth, exhibiting a great variety of very beautiful and perfect forms. [1913 Webster]

Note: Snow is often used to form compounds, most of which are of obvious meaning; as, snow-capped, snow-clad, snow-cold, snow-crowned, snow-crust, snow-fed, snow-haired, snowlike, snow-mantled, snow-nodding, snow-wrought, and the like. [1913 Webster]

2. Fig.: Something white like snow, as the white color (argent) in heraldry; something which falls in, or as in, flakes. [1913 Webster]

The field of snow with eagle of black therein. --Chaucer. [1913 Webster]

{Red snow}. See under {Red}. [1913 Webster]

{Snow bunting}. (Zo["o]l.) See {Snowbird}, 1.

{Snow cock} (Zo["o]l.), the snow pheasant.

{Snow flea} (Zo["o]l.), a small black leaping poduran ({Achorutes nivicola}) often found in winter on the snow in vast numbers.

{Snow flood}, a flood from melted snow.

{Snow flower} (Bot.), the fringe tree.

{Snow fly}, or {Snow insect} (Zo["o]l.), any one of several species of neuropterous insects of the genus {Boreus}. The male has rudimentary wings; the female is wingless. These insects sometimes appear creeping and leaping on the snow in great numbers.

{Snow gnat} (Zo["o]l.), any wingless dipterous insect of the genus {Chionea} found running on snow in winter.

{Snow goose} (Zo["o]l.), any one of several species of arctic geese of the genus {Chen}. The common snow goose ({Chen hyperborea}), common in the Western United States in winter, is white, with the tips of the wings black and legs and bill red. Called also {white brant}, {wavey}, and {Texas goose}. The blue, or blue-winged, snow goose ({Chen c[oe]rulescens}) is varied with grayish brown and bluish gray, with the wing quills black and the head and upper part of the neck white. Called also {white head}, {white-headed goose}, and {bald brant}.

{Snow leopard} (Zool.), the ounce.

{Snow line}, lowest limit of perpetual snow. In the Alps this is at an altitude of 9,000 feet, in the Andes, at the equator, 16,000 feet.

{Snow mouse} (Zo["o]l.), a European vole ({Arvicola nivalis}) which inhabits the Alps and other high mountains.

{Snow pheasant} (Zo["o]l.), any one of several species of large, handsome gallinaceous birds of the genus {Tetraogallus}, native of the lofty mountains of Asia. The Himalayn snow pheasant ({T. Himalayensis}) in the best-known species. Called also {snow cock}, and {snow chukor}.

{Snow partridge}. (Zo["o]l.) See under {Partridge}.

{Snow pigeon} (Zo["o]l.), a pigeon ({Columba leuconota}) native of the Himalaya mountains. Its back, neck, and rump are white, the top of the head and the ear coverts are black.

{Snow plant} (Bot.), a fleshy parasitic herb ({Sarcodes sanguinea}) growing in the coniferous forests of California. It is all of a bright red color, and is fabled to grow from the snow, through which it sometimes shoots up. [1913 Webster]


The Collaborative International Dictionary of English. 2000.

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Look at other dictionaries:

  • snow line — snow′ line n. 1) mer the line, as on mountains, above which there is perpetual snow 2) mer the latitudinal line marking the limit of the fall of snow at sea level • Etymology: 1825–35 …   From formal English to slang

  • snow line — n the snow line the level above which snow on a mountain never melts …   Dictionary of contemporary English

  • snow line — or snow limit n. the boundary between a region of permanent snow and a region where the snow melts in the summer …   English World dictionary

  • snow line — 1. the line, as on mountains, above which there is perpetual snow. 2. the latitudinal line marking the limit of the fall of snow at sea level. [1825 35] * * * ▪ topography       the lower topographic limit of permanent snow cover. The snow line… …   Universalium

  • snow line — noun the line on a mountain above which there is perpetual snow and ice • Hypernyms: ↑line * * * noun 1. : the lower margin of a perennial snowfield : the elevation above which some snow remains throughout the year 2. : the extreme limit from the …   Useful english dictionary

  • Snow line — The snow line is the point above which, or poleward of which, snow and ice cover the ground throughout the year.The interplay of altitude and latitude affect the precise placement of the snow line at a particular location. At or near the equator …   Wikipedia

  • snow line — noun the snow line the level above which snow on a mountain never melts …   Longman dictionary of contemporary English

  • snow line — sniego linija statusas T sritis Kūno kultūra ir sportas apibrėžtis Žemutinė nuolatinės sniego dangos riba kalnuose. atitikmenys: angl. snow line vok. Schneelinie, f rus. снежная линия …   Sporto terminų žodynas

  • snow line — lower line of an area (such as a mountain) covered with snow for most or all of the year; latitudinal line indicating where snowfall begins at sea level …   English contemporary dictionary

  • snow line — noun The altitude, in a mountainous region, above which the ground is covered with snow, at any particular time. Syn: snow level …   Wiktionary

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