air mass

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noun

a body of air covering a relatively wide area, exhibiting approximately uniform properties through any horizontal section.

QUIZ

THINGAMABOB OR THINGUMMY: CAN YOU DISTINGUISH BETWEEN THE US AND UK TERMS IN THIS QUIZ?

Do you know the difference between everyday US and UK terminology? Test yourself with this quiz on words that differ across the Atlantic.

Question 1 of 7

In the UK, COTTON CANDY is more commonly known as…

candystring

candyfloss

candypuff

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Origin of air mass

First recorded in 1890–95

Words nearby air mass

airman, airmanship, Airman's Medal, air map, air marshal, air mass, air mattress, Air Medal, air meter, air mile, Air Miles

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use air mass in a sentence

They are being fueled by an unstable, humid air mass on westerly-southwesterly winds.
Risk of severe storms decreases with drier air pushing into region|Jason Samenow, Jeffrey Halverson|July 21, 2021|Washington Post
Hot, dry weather to increase fire riskIn addition to the hot temperatures, the sultry air mass will spur additional wildfire growth and ignition across the West, where dozens of fires are already raging.
Yet another major heat wave is set to roast the western U.S. and Canada by the weekend|Matthew Cappucci|July 14, 2021|Washington Post
The chilly air mass over Washington is overtaking much of the eastern two-thirds of the United States, from the northern Rockies to northern Florida.
Abnormally chilly weather to hover over D.C., may delay cicada outburst|Jason Samenow|May 6, 2021|Washington Post
All models, in general, seem to have difficulty properly simulating the arrival of a “warm plume” above the colder air mass.
Sleet vs. snow: The reason behind Thursday’s icy mess|Jeffrey Halverson|February 19, 2021|Washington Post

We’ll have to see just how cold this air mass ends up being.
D.C.-area forecast: Showers today, with soaking rain tonight|A. Camden Walker, Jason Samenow|December 4, 2020|Washington Post
And that leaves us with the hell freezing part: an arctic air mass is descending on the District for the weekend.
Inaugural Hell Freezes Over|Lyric Winik|January 13, 2009|DAILY BEAST
Besides those who have pinned their faith to the thicknesses, there are those who take up with the "air mass" theory.
Antonio Stradivari|Horace William Petherick
We were afforded a novel and striking scene before we left Zatrijebać in the form of an open-air Mass on Sunday.
The Land of the Black Mountain|Reginald Wyon
At night an open-air mass-meeting was held in Memorial Hall Square, where ten thousand men assembled.
Speeches of Benjamin Harrison|Benjamin Harrison
When there is a dominant continental air mass, it spills cold air onto the lowland areas.
Area Handbook for Albania|Eugene K. Keefe
Cyclone is simply the generic name for a large rotating air mass.
Wind and Weather|Alexander McAdie

British Dictionary definitions for air mass

air mass

noun

a large body of air having characteristics of temperature, moisture, and pressure that are approximately uniform horizontally

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Scientific definitions for air mass

air mass

A widespread body of air that originates over a large area of land or ocean and assumes the temperature and humidity of that area, with characteristics distributed fairly evenly throughout the horizontal layers of the mass. Air that stands over the Caribbean Sea, for example, becomes a warm, humid maritime tropical air mass, while air that lies in the Arctic regions of northern Canada takes on the cold and dry characteristics of its surroundings and becomes a continental polar air mass. When air masses of differing properties come into contact in the middle latitudes, they frequently generate storm fronts.