barometer

[buh-rom-i-ter]

noun

Meteorology. any instrument that measures atmospheric pressure.Compare aneroid barometer, mercury barometer.

anything that indicates changes.

Origin of barometer

First recorded in 1655–65; baro- + -meter

Related formsbar·o·met·ric

[bar-uh-me-trik] /ˌbær əˈmɛ trɪk/, bar·o·met·ri·cal, adjectivebar·o·met·ri·cal·ly, adverb

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for barometric

Historical Examples of barometric

The barometric line—gives a value of 3/100H for each inch of change.
Seasoning of Wood
Joseph B. Wagner
If there was a decline her barometric temperament registered the fact.
Jennie Gerhardt
Theodore Dreiser
He made me tell him the temperature and the barometric pressure every hour for about a month!
The Right Time
Walter Bupp
Is it then the attraction of magnetism which produces the barometric oscillations?
The Philosophy of the Weather
Thomas Belden Butler
Assawa Lake is shown, by barometric measurement, to be 1,532 feet above the Gulf.
Summary Narrative of an Exploratory Expedition to the Sources of the Mississippi River, in 1820
Henry Rowe Schoolcraft

British Dictionary definitions for barometric

barometer

noun

an instrument for measuring atmospheric pressure, usually to determine altitude or weather changes

anything that shows change or impending changethe barometer of social change

Derived Formsbarometric (ˌbærəˈmɛtrɪk) or barometrical, adjectivebarometrically, adverbbarometry, noun

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

Word Origin and History for barometric

adj.

1802, from barometer + -ic. Barometrical is recorded from 1660s.

barometer

1660s, from Greek baros "weight" (from barys "heavy;" see grave (adj.)) + -meter. Probably coined (and certainly popularized) by English scientist Robert Boyle (1627-1691).

barometric in Science

barometer

[bə-rŏm′ĭ-tər]

An instrument for measuring atmospheric pressure. Barometers are used in determining height above sea level and in forecasting the weather. The two primary types of barometers are the aneroid and the mercury barometer.

barometric in Culture

barometer

An instrument that measures atmospheric pressure.

Note

In general, when the barometer falls in response to a drop in pressure, bad weather is approaching; when the barometer rises because of an increase in pressure, good weather will follow.