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• boreal
  boreal

  adjective

  of or relating to the north wind.
• Boreal
  Boreal

  adjective

  of or denoting the coniferous forests in the north of the N hemisphere

boreal

American  

[bawr-ee-uhl, bohr‑] / ˈbɔr i əl, ˈboʊr‑ /

adjective

1. of or relating to the north wind.

2. of or relating to the north.

3. (sometimes initial capital letter) pertaining to Boreas.

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Boreal ¹ British  

/ ˈbɔːrɪəl /

adjective

1. of or denoting the coniferous forests in the north of the N hemisphere

2. designating a climatic zone having snowy winters and short summers

3. designating a dry climatic period from about 7500 to 5500 _bc , characterized by cold winters, warm summers, and a flora dominated by pines and hazels

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boreal ² British  

/ ˈbɔːrɪəl /

adjective

1. of or relating to the north or the north wind

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boreal Scientific  

/ bôr′ē-əl /

1. Relating to the north or to northern areas.

2. Relating to the north wind.

3. Relating to the forest areas of the Northern Temperate Zone that are dominated by coniferous trees such as spruce, fir, and pine.

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Etymology

Origin of boreal

1425–75; late Middle English boriall < Late Latin boreālis northern ( Latin bore(ās) Boreas + -ālis -al ¹ )

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

boreal Boreal

Those green ecosystems are far different from California’s; our neighbor’s fires generally arise in massive boreal forests, which do not have debris or brush concerns because they’ve never been logged or otherwise interfered with.

From Slate ● Jul. 21, 2026

Canada's 270 million hectares of boreal forest -- that is forest in high-latitude environments -- comprises 28 percent of the world's boreal zone.

From Barron's ● Jul. 20, 2026

Canada’s boreal forest encompasses 1.3 billion acres, or an area roughly seven times as large as that of the 154 U.S. national forests combined.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 17, 2026

In many boreal regions, flames can spread downward into thick layers of carbon rich soil beneath the forest floor.

From Science Daily ● Mar. 4, 2026

He is Frank Volkheimer, an upperclassman, seventeen years old, a colossal boy from some boreal village, a legend among the younger cadets.

From "All the Light We Cannot See" by Anthony Doerr

Boreal forests are also supposed to burn on an infrequent basis, in order to open up certain pine cones and spread their seeds, or to clear out lower tree branches.

From Slate ● Jul. 21, 2026

But El Nino's warm water can fuel cyclones in the central and eastern Pacific during the Boreal summer.

From Barron's ● Jun. 11, 2026

Norwegian public transport operator Boreal ordered 20 of the hydrofoiling electric passenger boats to service new and existing routes along the Norwegian coast and across the country’s fjords.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 9, 2026

Experts from the nearby Boreal Mountain Ski Resort and the Alder Creek Adventure Center are also attempting to reach the site.

From BBC ● Feb. 17, 2026

“But what about Lord Boreal? Sir Charles? He was healthy enough, wasn’t he?”

From "The Amber Spyglass" by Philip Pullman