cirrus
Americannoun
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Meteorology.
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a cloud of a class characterized by thin white filaments or narrow bands and a composition of ice crystals: of high altitude, about 20,000–40,000 feet (6000–12,000 meters).
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a cirriform cloud.
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Botany. a tendril.
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Zoology.
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a filament or slender appendage serving as a foot, tentacle, barbel, etc.
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the male copulatory organ of flatworms and various other invertebrates.
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noun
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meteorol a thin wispy fibrous cloud at high altitudes, composed of ice particles
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a plant tendril or similar part
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zoology
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a slender tentacle or filament in barnacles and other marine invertebrates
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a hairlike structure in other animals, such as a filament on the appendage of an insect or a barbel of a fish
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A high-altitude cloud composed of feathery white patches or bands of ice crystals. Cirrus clouds generally form between 6,100 and 12,200 m (20,000 and 40,000 ft).
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See illustration at cloud
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of cirrus
1700–10; < Latin: a curl, tuft, plant filament like a tuft of hair
Vocabulary lists containing cirrus
Weather and Climate - Introductory
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Weather and Climate - Middle School
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Earth Science - Middle School
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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.
These recent events, however, have only amplified trends that had begun building earlier in the year, Cirrus Research Chief Executive Satya Pradhuman says.
From Barron's • Mar. 5, 2026
As medical centers move to the Cirrus system, doctors need a dependable way to translate measurements so they can compare results over time.
From Science Daily • Nov. 14, 2025
James, 57, was one of the three people aboard a single-engine Cirrus SR22T when it went down "under unknown circumstances in a wooded area".
From BBC • Sep. 19, 2025
Cirrus publications helped expand the reach of the vibrant L.A. art scene to far-flung locales and audiences.
From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 6, 2025
Cirrus clouds always appear to move slowly, because they're so high up.
From The Boy with the U. S. Weather Men by Rolt-Wheeler, Francis
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.
