graupel
Americannoun
noun
-
A small, white ice particle that falls as precipitation and breaks apart easily when it lands on a surface.
-
Also called snow pellet soft hail
Etymology
Origin of graupel
1885–90; < German; diminutive of Graupe hulled grain
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Graupel, also known as snow pellets or soft hail, forms when water droplets freeze onto a snow crystal, according to the National Weather Service.
From Seattle Times • Apr. 30, 2024
Graupel, an ice-snow combo, dusted the Hollywood sign.
From New York Times • Mar. 8, 2023
Graupel is also called snow pellets or soft hail, as the graupel particles are particularly fragile and generally disintegrate when handled.
From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 24, 2023
Graupel is sometimes described as pellets of snow or as frost-covered snowflakes.
From Washington Post • Mar. 26, 2022
Graupel consists of soft, small pellets of hail that form when water droplets freeze over a crystal of snow.
From Seattle Times • Feb. 26, 2022
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
